New York Governor Says 474 COVID-19 Deaths Over Past 24 Hours Represent 'Gentle Decline’

NEW YORK (Sputnik) - The US state of New York reported 474 new deaths from the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), which represents a moderate decline in the death toll, Governor Andrew Cuomo said in a press briefing on Wednesday.

"Number of lives lost is still breathtakingly painful - 474", Cuomo said. "But, at least, it is not going up anymore and it seems to be on a gentle decline".

Cuomo said that in the downstate area, which covers New York City, the curve representing infected residents is going downward given that the number of hospitalizations and intubations are on the decline.

"We are in a better place", Cuomo said.

The mayor also said that it is still too early to talk about the reopening of New York State’s economy because of the high risk of a second and even a third wave of a COVID-19 outbreak.

On Tuesday, New York registered 481 COVID-19-related deaths and 478 deaths the day before. At the peak of the outbreak in early April, the daily death toll neared 800 fatalities statewide.

The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis continues to grow as the number of people infected with it increases from day to day. To date, the number of people who have been infected worldwide is over 2.6 million and more than 180,000 have succumbed to the deadly virus or related health complications, according to the Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Centre.