COVID-19 cases set a new record on Saturday in Russia as the country struggles to contain the wave of infections that began more than a month ago.
The national agency against the coronavirus reported 41,335 new infections in the last 24 hours on Saturday, up from the previous daily record of 40,993 on October 31. Another 1,188 died of COVID-19, seven less than their all-time high reached the day before, he added.
The authorities note that the low national vaccination rate is a key factor in the significant increase in infections that began in mid-September. According to the agency, around 57.2 million people have completed the vaccination schedule, the equivalent of less than 40% of its 146 million inhabitants.
Last month, President Vladimir Putin ordered a non-working period between October 30 and November 7 and authorized regional governments to extend it if necessary. Several regions, including Novgorod in the northwest; Tomsk in Siberia; Chelyabinsk in the Ural Mountains and Kursk and Bryansk, southwest of Moscow, extended it until the end of next week.
Moscow’s mayor said the situation in the capital had stabilized enough for the population to return to work on Monday.
Russia has registered more than 8.75 million confirmed cases and 245,635 deaths since the start of the pandemic, according to the agency, which counts only deaths directly attributed to the virus.
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