Johns Hopkins University says the global death toll from COVID-19 has surpassed 600,000.

The university’s tally as of Saturday night says the United States tops the list with 140,103 deaths. It is followed by 78,772 fatalities in Brazil and 45,358 in the United Kingdom.

The number of confirmed infections worldwide has passed 14.2 million, out of which 3.7 million are in the United States. There are over 2 million in Brazil and more than 1 million in India.

The World Health Organization again reported a single-day record of new infections with 259,848.

Mexico continues to register near-record levels of virus infections

MEXICO CITY — Mexico continues to register near-record levels of confirmed coronavirus infections, frustrating plans to reopen the economy.

The Health Department reported 7,615 more cases Saturday and 578 more deaths. That brings Mexico to a total of 38,888 confirmed COVID-19 deaths since the pandemic began and 338, 913 cases. Those numbers are widely considered significant undercounts because Mexico has done so little testing. Government labs have administered slightly more than 800,000 tests so far, or about one out of every 150 people in the country with a population of nearly 130 million.

Mexico had hoped to begin a gradual reopening starting in June, but several states have had to reverse course, closing beaches and hotels again.

Florida adds 10,000 new virus cases, 90 deaths

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Florida reported more than 10,000 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus and 90 additional deaths.

Gov. Ron DeSantis announced 30,000 vials of remdesivir were being shipped to the state after hospitals complained of shortages. He says he worked with Vice President Mike Pence last week to expedite the shipments.

DeSantis says the vials will be shipped directly to hospitals in the next 48 to 72 hours and should treat about 5,000 patients. He made the announcement at a St. Augustine hospital during a discussion with doctors.

The state reports Florida hospitals are treating more than 9,000 patients for coronavirus. Overall, there have been nearly 338,000 confirmed cases and 5,002 deaths.

Amsterdam discourages red light district visits

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — Authorities in Amsterdam are urging people not to visit the city’s famous red light district and have closed off some of the historic district’s narrow streets because they are too busy.

After months of coronavirus lockdown measures, sex workers in the Netherlands were allowed to resume work on July 1 and as other restrictions also have eased, the red light district has gotten busier again.

Late Saturday night, amid fears that visitors could not maintain social distancing, Amsterdam Municipality took action, closing roads in the area and tweeting in Dutch and English: “Don’t come to the red light district. It is too busy.”

South Africa now ranks fifth globally for virus cases

JOHANNESBURG — South Africa now ranks fifth in the world for confirmed coronavirus cases caseload as the African continent faces the pandemic’s first wave head-on.

South Africa on Saturday reported 13,285 new confirmed cases for a total of 350,879. That puts the country ahead of Peru and makes up roughly half the cases in Africa. The only four countries with more confirmed cases — the U.S., Brazil, India, and Russia — all have far more people than South Africa’s 57 million.

The virus arrived on the continent a little later than elsewhere, giving officials more time to prepare, but Africa has fewer health care resources than any other region and South Africa’s public hospitals struggle to handle the growing number of patients.

Gauteng province, home to Johannesburg and the capital, Pretoria, is now Africa’s epicenter for the virus. It has one-quarter of the country’s population and many of the poor are crowded in township areas with inadequate access to clean water and sanitation.

South Africa has seen 4,948 reported virus deaths, but the South African Medical Research Council in its most recent report shows the country had 10,944 “excess deaths” between May 6 and July 7.

Read more here.

WHO reports another single-day record for new cases

The World Health Organization is again posting a single-day record of new confirmed coronavirus cases. It announced 259,848 new cases on Saturday.

The WHO on Friday posted more than 237,000 confirmed cases around the world. The back-to-back records come as many nations struggle with new waves of infections after loosening lockdown restrictions.

Data compiled by Johns Hopkins University show more than 14 million cases worldwide since the start of the pandemic, with nearly 600,000 deaths.

Tests of raw sewage at Yosemite detect presence of virus

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. – No employee or resident has tested positive at Yosemite National Park’s health clinic, and no visitors have reported being sick since the park began reopening last month, but tests of the park’s raw sewage have confirmed the presence of the virus.

Dozens of people are believed to have been infected.

The public health officer for Mariposa County, who is overseeing coronavirus testing in the Yosemite area, said the emergence of the coronavirus will not likely lead to policy changes because the park is already following local and state restrictions. Eric Sergienko said he believes the confirmed presence of the virus in Yosemite will make people more vigilant.

Yosemite, which typically attracts more than 4 million visitors each year, is cutting the number of vehicle passes to the park by half. Visitor centers remain closed, while campgrounds, gift shops and hotels are limiting services to allow for physical distancing.

Arizona reports 147 deaths, new daily record

PHOENIX — Arizona health officials reported a daily record of 147 deaths from the coronavirus and 2,742 new confirmed cases.

The Department of Health Services say the additional deaths included 106 newly attributed to COVID-19 after health officials’ latest periodic reviews of death certificates. It says the additional cases didn’t include figures from a laboratory that missed the reporting cutoff. The department says the missing cases will be reported Sunday.

The additional deaths and cases reported Saturday increased the statewide confirmed totals to 2,730 deaths and 141,265 infections.

Gov. Doug Ducey’s lifted stay-home orders and other restrictions in May. Last month, he reversed course and authorized local governments to impose masking requirements. Ducey’s recent messaging has promoted use of masks, social distancing and hand washing.

Greece records no daily deaths, stresses masks

ATHENS, Greece — Greek authorities announced 19 new cases of coronavirus and no new deaths over the past 24 hours.

Total confirmed cases since the outbreak of the epidemic are 3,983, with 194 deaths.

Despite the relatively low number of cases, authorities are concerned about increasing evidence that social distancing guidelines aren’t being followed. On Saturday, they extended mandatory wearing of masks to supermarket customers and are considering expanding the mask requirement.

Hawaii persons incarcerated in Arizona being monitored

HONOLULU — Dozens of Hawaii inmates housed at a private prison in southern Arizona are being monitored for coronavirus symptoms.

The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported the Hawaii Department of Public Safety says 45 Hawaii inmates in the same unit at the Saguaro Correctional Center are in quarantine and being monitored for symptoms. Another 28 Hawaii inmates who had contact with Nevada inmates will be quarantined for 14 days.

CoreCivic, which runs the correctional center, didn’t immediately respond to calls by the Associated Press on Saturday. Corrections Corporation of America contracts with the Hawaii Department of Public Safety to house adult male inmates from Hawaii to ease prison overcrowding on the islands.

British scientists dismiss Johnson’s timeline

LONDON — British scientists are dismissing Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s hope the country may emerge from coronavirus lockdown and return to normality by Christmas.

Johnson has announced more easing of restrictions, with people urged to return to public transit and workplaces. He says sports fans should return to stadiums by October and remaining restrictions could be lifted from November, “possibly in time for Christmas.”

But epidemiologist John Edmunds, a member of the government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, says a return to pre-pandemic normality wouldn’t be possible until there’s a vaccine for the virus.

He says a world where people can “go to work normally, travel on the buses and trains, go on holiday without restrictions, meet friends, shake hands, hug each other and so on — that’s a long way off, unfortunately.”

England’s Chief Medical Officer, Chris Whitty, also says social distancing rules would have to be in place for a “prolonged period.”

Britain has registered more than 45,000 confirmed COVID-19 deaths, the highest total in Europe.

Virus continues spreading across India

NEW DELHI — A surge of 34,884 new coronavirus cases took India’s tally to 1,038,716, as local governments reimpose focused lockdowns in several parts of the country.

The Health Ministry on Saturday reported 671 confirmed deaths in the past 24 hours for a total of 26,273. The ministry says the recovery rate had slightly come down to 62.9%.

The actual numbers, like elsewhere in the world, are likely far higher because of various reasons, including limited testing. More than 300,000 samples are tested every day.

About a dozen states, including Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Assam, have put high-risk areas under lockdowns, only allowing essential food supplies and health services.

Rahul Gandhi, leader of the main opposition Congress party, urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday to take concrete steps to contain the pandemic. He warned the number of infections will double to 2 million by Aug. 10 at the current pace.

Experts say India is likely to witness a series of peaks as the infection spreads in rural areas.

Worldwide cases top 14 million

Confirmed coronavirus cases around the world have topped 14 million and deaths have surpassed 600,000, according to a tally from Johns Hopkins University on Saturday.

The World Health Organization reported a single-day record of new infections: over 237,000. Experts believe that the true numbers are even higher.

The United States, Brazil and India top the list with the highest number of cases. India on Friday exceeded 1 million confirmed infections, and Brazil’s cases passed 2 million, including 76,000 deaths, on Thursday.

Australian state sees marked drop in new infections

MELBOURNE, Australia — Australia’s Victoria state saw a marked drop in new COVID-19 infections — from Friday’s record high of 428 to 217 — a total that Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton says was “a relief after yesterday’s numbers.”

The Health Department said Saturday that two more Victorians, a man and a woman both aged in their 80s, had died, taking the state’s death toll to 34 and Australia’s national total to 118.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said the latest numbers were encouraging but warned it was just one day.

He says “we’d want to see a pattern where there’s stability and then a decrease.” He urged residents in metropolitan Melbourne to remain diligent during a six-week lockdown — “being bored is much better than being in intensive care.”

Mexico records 736 deaths

MEXICO CITY — Mexico has registered 736 more COVID-19 deaths and 7,257 more confirmed cases of coronavirus infections.

Mexico now has more than 35,000 deaths from the pandemic, the fourth highest total in the world. It also has recorded over 324,000 cases, somewhere around the seventh-highest level.

The Health Department said Friday that hospitals in the Gulf coast state of Tabasco are now at 85% capacity and there is crowding in hospitals in the northern border state of Nuevo Leon.

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador says he is concerned about the situation in Tabasco, where he was born. He says a state hospital there will be expanded to handle more patients.

Texas records 174 new deaths Friday

AUSTIN, Texas — The deadliest month of the pandemic in Texas continues, with state officials reporting 174 new deaths, the most in one day since the coronavirus outbreak began.

Texas also reported more than 10,000 confirmed new cases Friday for the fourth consecutive day. The rate of positive cases also climbed above 17% for the first time.

Officials on the Texas-Mexico border, which has been especially hard hit, say hotels could be converted into medical units as early as next week.

The grim markers were announced hours after Texas gave public schools permission to keep campuses closed for more than 5 million students well into the fall. Nearly a third of the more than 3,700 coronavirus deaths in Texas have come in July.

New cases surging again in California

SACRAMENTO, Calif — California has recorded its third-highest daily total of new coronavirus cases, two days after reporting its second most cases in a day.

The state reported nearly 10,000 new cases and 130 deaths Friday, during a week of seesawing positive case figures that ranged from 7,346 to as high as 11,126 on Wednesday.

The daily positive test rate went down a bit, to 7.1% over the past seven days, compared to 7.4% for the past 14 days. California tested more than 120,000 people a day during most of the past week.

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced strict criteria Friday for school reopenings that make it unlikely the vast majority of districts can return to classroom instruction in the fall.

Chicago unveils 2-day in person learning plan

CHICAGO — Most Chicago children would return to the classroom two days a week and spend the other three days learning remotely once the school year begins, under a tentative plan outlined Friday.

Chicago Public Schools officials called the hybrid approach a preliminary framework and asked parents, students and staff of nation’s third-largest school district to weigh in.

A final decision about in-person instruction for fall classes won’t come until late August, with classes set to begin Sept. 8.

“We have to be ready for any possibility,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said. “COVID-19 has been unpredictable from the start and we have a responsibility to be prepared for what the public health indicators dictate, whether that means remote learning, in-person learning or something in between.”

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