Bangladesh logs record 153 COVID deaths in a day, 8,661 new cases

Bangladesh has registered 153 new deaths from COVID-19 in a day, a record high, taking the total toll from the disease to 15,065.

Khulna, a recent hotspot, tallied 51 fatalities in a 24-hour count, the most among the eight divisions in the country. Dhaka was a close second with 46 deaths, followed by Chattogram and Rangpur with 15 and Rajshahi with 12.

The COVID-19 caseload surged to 944,917 after 8,661 people tested positive for the disease until 8 am Sunday, according to the latest government data.

Dhaka logged the highest daily cases among the eight divisions with 4,207. Khulna saw 1,304 new cases, Rajshahi 992, Chattogram 673, and Rangpur 556.

Nationwide, another 4,698 people recovered from the illness, bringing the total number of recoveries to 833,897.

As many as 29,879 samples were tested across the country, for a positivity rate of 28.99 percent. The latest figures put the recovery rate at 88.25 percent and the mortality rate at 1.59 percent.

Bangladesh is currently facing a renewed surge in COVID-19 cases and deaths, prompting the government to impose its harshest lockdown yet.

After record infections and deaths in April, June was the second cruellest month for Bangladesh since the coronavirus pandemic struck the country in March 2020.

Globally, over 183.56 million people have been infected by the novel coronavirus and 3.97 million have died, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

Infections have been reported in more than 210 countries and territories since the first cases were identified in China in December 2019.