Russia has confirmed a record daily coronavirus death toll at 320 fatalities Tuesday as the country seeks to slow a record-breaking surge in cases with new restrictions.
The previous record death toll of 317 Covid-19 deaths was recorded less than a week ago last Wednesday.
Tuesday's increase brings Russia’s overall Covid-19 death toll, as reported by the national information center that collates daily figures from regional centers, to 26,589. Monthly state statistics and experts have suggested the real death toll is at least double that figure.
Moscow, the epicenter of Russia’s coronavirus outbreak with around one-quarter of daily Covid-19 deaths, confirmed 61 fatalities. The city now accounts for 6,503 of Russia's Covid-19 deaths.
The record daily death toll comes one day after Russia saw its highest daily increase of 17,347 new Covid-19 infections. It added 16,550 new infections Tuesday.
Russia’s official number of cases stands at 1,547,774, the fourth-highest in the world.
The surge in new infections and deaths comes as authorities announced a nationwide mask mandate starting Wednesday and ordered restaurants and other nightlife establishments to close after 11 p.m.
Authorities had introduced unpopular lockdown measures in the spring, including bans on taking non-essential walks outside, when Russia saw fewer than 10,000 daily Covid-19 cases on average.
During the second wave, they have introduced targeted measures at what are deemed to be Covid-19 hotspots and are urging residents to follow health guidelines until mass production of Russia’s coronavirus vaccine begins in the next few months.
