Mayor of New York Bill de Blasio has cautioned that the number of COVID-19 cases in the city could increase substantially to about 10,000 very soon and called for “urgent intervention” by the federal government to help slow down the trajectory of the coronavirus pandemic.
The United States has at least 8,736 cases of coronavirus and 149 deaths, according to state and local health authorities and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
New York is by far the worst-hit state, with more than 2,900 cases and 21 deaths. The city added nearly 1,000 cases of individuals infected by the virus in a span of just one day.
“So, a hundred plus new cases yesterday…that is what I’m seeing as a kind of a gallop now. This morning, the latest news, 923 cases, but we’re going to top a thousand today undoubtedly. We’re going to be at 10,000 not so long from now,” de Blasio told NBC.
He said the exponential increase in the number of cases will put a strain on the city’s hospitals, particularly the ICUs.