Newsroom / CNA
Russia announced a record 890 deaths due to COVID-19 in the past 24 hours. The country is in the middle of the so-called fourth wave of the new coronavirus pandemic, which is partly attributed to the most contagious Delta variant and partly due to the fact that vaccination rates continue to decline.
So far, Russia officially recorded 209,918 deaths due to COVID-19, which means that it has suffered the heaviest blow in Europe. But the Russian national statistical agency ROSSTAT, which takes into account the broader parameters of deaths due to COVID-19 by the government, said more than 350,000 people died due to the pandemic up until the end of July 2021. There was also a recorded increase of SARS CoV-2 cases.
25,769 people were diagnosed yesterday, the highest number since July 16, most in Moscow (4,294) and St. Petersburg (2,463). In total, the authorities are talking about 7,586,536 infections. According to data compiled by the specialized website Gogov, only 29.1% of the Russian population has been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 at this stage, although doses of several domestically produced drugs are available.
In order to avoid a blow to the economy, authorities refuse to take restrictive measures, let alone declare a lockdown. The use of a mask, supposedly mandatory, as well as social distancing are rather rare.
