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Where are the world’s COVID-19 hotspots now? The countries with the most coronavirus deaths in the last week

Andy Wells
·Freelance Writer
Updated ·4 min read
People arrive for the burial of Jose Mario de Souza Veiga, 83, whose family members said died of COVID-19, at the Campo da Esperanca cemetery on the border of the neighborhoods of Taguatinga and Ceilandia, in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, July 21, 2020. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)
People arrive for the burial of Jose Mario de Souza Veiga, whose family members said died of COVID-19, at the Campo da Esperanca cemetery in Brazil. (AP)

As the world continues to deal with the coronavirus pandemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) has outlined where the global hotspots are now.

Data from the WHO shows that the Americas are the major global COVID-19 hotspot, with over 311,000 deaths related to the disease since the pandemic began.

However, as the peak of the outbreak moves away from western European countries, and countries start to ease lockdown restrictions, the WHO has warned of increasing cases across other parts of the continent, as well as in Africa.

Mike Ryan, head of the WHO emergencies programme, told radio station Newstalk: “Obviously the Americas is clearly still the major hotspot, North, Central and South America, but we have disease beginning to accelerate in Africa.”

A man gestures to the driver of a bus as people wearing masks wait at a bus stop in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, July 22, 2020. With a surge in coronavirus cases in the past few weeks, state governments in India have been ordering focused lockdowns in high-risk areas to slow down the spread of infections. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
People wear masks at a bus stop in Mumbai, India, as coronavirus cases in the country soar. (AP)

He added: “Also, even in Europe, while certainly in western Europe the disease has come under control, we still have some worrying trends in southern Europe and the Balkans so we’re not out of the woods just yet in the European environment. It requires sustained vigilance.”

The global coronavirus death toll currently stands at 617,297, according to Johns Hopkins, while confirmed cases across the world stand at nearly 15 million.

Infection rate figures are difficult to compare due to differences in how they are reported from country to country.

There is currently no international standard in how to measure deaths and causes of deaths, while differing populations and geographical area sizes makes it hard to compare the rates of infection – or deaths – from country to country.

Based on figures from the WHO, these are the seven countries with the most coronavirus deaths in the last seven days:

Brazil

Brazil has the highest coronavirus death toll of the last seven days, with 7,388 people dying from the illness. The total death toll in the South American country surpassed 80,000 this week – four times what it was just two months ago. Several days each saw over 1,000 new deaths from coronavirus.

MORE: Brazil's offshore oil workers chilled by coronavirus outbreaks

USA

The United States still tops the global coronavirus death toll list, with 142,080 having succumbed to the illness – over 60,000 more than the second country in the list, Brazil. Across the last seven days, 5,260 people in the US have died from COVID-19.

MORE: Uber offers COVID-19 contact tracing help amid chaotic US response

India

India’s death toll from the last seven days stands at 4,357, while total deaths have reached 28,732. There were 37,724 new cases reported in the past 24 hours, out of a total of almost 1.2 million cases since the start of the outbreak. The pandemic has forced the cancellation of a historic Hindu pilgrimage to a holy cave high in the snow-capped mountains of contested Kashmir for the first time.

MORE: India cancels historic Hindu pilgrimage as coronavirus cases mount

Mexico

On Tuesday, Mexico passed 40,000 coronavirus deaths – making it the fourth highest death toll in the world. The last seven days alone has seen 4,178 people dying, forcing president Manuel Lopez Obrador to improve health standards in the nation.

MORE: Mexico’s COVID-19 death toll passes 40,000 mark

Chile

Chile has set out a plan to begin easing lockdown restrictions as the infection rate improved in some parts of the country. Nevertheless, it remains a global coronavirus hotspot, with 1,609 deaths in the last seven days.

MORE: Chile eyes gradual reopening after coronavirus infections slow in some areas

People wearing protective face masks to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus sit inside a train in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, July 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
People wearing protective face masks sit inside a train in Tehran, Iran. (AP)

Colombia

The Colombian government has so far resisted calls to reimpose full lockdown measures, after they were relaxed in an attempt to deal with the country’s economic crisis. Deaths in the last seven days stand at 1,429, while Colombia’s total COVID deaths stand at 7,166 – the 16th largest in the world.

MORE: Bogota mayor extends virus lockdown after government refuses

Iran

Figures from Iran’s health ministry on Tuesday showed there were a record 229 deaths in the previous 24 hours. There were 1,373 COVID deaths in total in Iran in the last seven days. Iran remains the Middle Eastern country hardest hit by the pandemic, with a total of 14,853 deaths out of 281,413 confirmed cases.

MORE: Iran hits record 229 deaths from coronavirus in past 24 hours

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