Following a record of 54,000 new infections in a single day, Brazil has become the second country in the world to hit a million COVID-19 cases.
The country recorded over 1,200 deaths for the fourth consecutive day on Friday,June 19, 2020, bringing the total to nearly 49,000.
The new development comes two months after the United States reached the one million mark and just days after the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Director Carissa Etienne stated that the South American country was a major concern.
Lack of testing in the nation with a population of 209 million has made professionals say that the actual figures could be a lot higher.
Just hours before the release of the latest figures, the World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus had warned that the COVID-19 pandemic was entering a new and dangerous stage.
According to Ghebreyesus, cases are on the rise as people are becoming tired of lockdowns and governments are seeking to restart their economies.
