The US set another grim record on Wednesday, when it recorded 3,000 coronavirus deaths in a single day for the first time.
According to the New York Times, at least 3,011 people died of COVID-19 on December 9 alone, the most number yet in any single day since the pandemic hit the US.
Over the past seven days, the country has been reporting an average of 2,249 deaths each day.
By comparison, 2977 people died in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack. It was the country’s deadliest day in modern times – before Wednesday’s record-breaking death toll.
While the coronavirus is incomparable to the tragic 9/11 attack, it can’t be denied that the invisible enemy is pushing US to its limits and harming more and more people every day.
The US also reached a record-high on Wednesday with at least 106,000 people were admitted to hospitals and health centers across states due to COVID-19.
The US Department of Health and Human Services released data this week on the number of beds available at individual hospitals, and it has confirmed the obvious: US hospitals are nearing 90 percent capacity and the situation’s getting worse.
In California, hospital admissions have risen 70 percent over the last two weeks, leaving just 1,700 intensive-care unit beds available out of 7,800. Governor Gavin Newsom has already issued stay-at-home orders in regions where ICU beds fell below 15 percent capacity.
So far, the US has logged nearly 15.4 million coronavirus cases, with more than 289,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data.
There are signs of hope coming in the US, though, as the Food and Drug Administration gave positive reviews of the coronavirus vaccine manufactured by Pfizer and BioNTech.
The vaccine showed 95 percent efficacy, according to a final analysis. However, four of the trial volunteers developed Bell’s palsy, causing some fears among Americans.
Drug maker Modern has also already applied for emergency authorization to start administering the vaccines.
Over the coming days, US is expected to approve official usage of vaccines.
With positive cases and deaths being recorded every minute, the approval of vaccines may be the greatest gift Americans will receive for Christmas.