Coronavirus: Italy death toll reaches 3,405, overtaking China
Officials report 427 new deaths on same day Chinese city records no new infections
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Italy has overtaken China as the country with the most coronavirus-related deaths in the world after reporting 3,405 fatalities from the Covid-19 pandemic.
In a stark illustration of how Europe has become the new epicentre of the pandemic, Italian officials reported 427 additional deaths on the same day Wuhan, the Chinese city where the virus was first identified, recorded no new infections.
UN and Italian health authorities have cited a variety of reasons for Italy's toll, most notably its large elderly population, which is the second oldest in the world.
The vast majority of people who have died in Italy - 87 per cent, as of Thursday - have been older than 70 years old.
Italy, with its population of 60 million people, has now recorded about 150 more deaths than China, which has a population of more than 1 billion.
The Chinese government has used draconian lockdowns to control its outbreak and stop the spread of Covid-19.
On Thursday, a visiting Chinese Red Cross team criticised the failure of some Italians to properly quarantine themselves and take national lockdown measures seriously.
Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit, a virologist at Germany's Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, said Italy's high death rate could be explained in part by the almost total breakdown of the health system in some areas.
"That's what happens when the health system collapses," he said.
On a visit to the northern city of Milan, the head of a Chinese Red Cross delegation helping advise Italy said he was shocked to see so many people walking around, using public transportation and eating out.
Thursday marked the first time since 20 January that Wuhan showed no new locally transmitted cases of Covid-19, a sign of how China's strict measures have been effective for containing the virus.
Additional reporting by AP
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments