Brazil is slowly disappearing as the virus continues to expand

Passengers on the Rio metro, June 26, 2020. REUTERS / Ricardo Moraes

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In Brazil, the situation is getting worse and the pandemic is spreading to small and medium-sized cities. While the country is more than a hundred days from the start of the epidemic, the contamination curve is far from decreasing. With nearly 56,000 deaths and over a million cases, some major cities have started to reopen their businesses. And the medical world is worried.

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With our correspondent in Rio de Janeiro,  Sarah Cozzolino

As Rio de Janeiro reopened its bars and resumed its football championship, the virus continues to rage and circulate. Roberto Kraenkel, a member of the independent Covid-19 observatory, says he is very concerned.

“  We are seeing an increase in the number of cases, but especially in medium-sized Brazilian cities. So these are medium-sized cities that are becoming new hotbeds of infection in Brazil. "

These small and medium-sized cities, whose health system is more precarious, risk being hit hard by the arrival of the epidemic. For Gulnar Azevedo e Silva, professor of epidemiology at the State University of Rio, the coming weeks will be very difficult.

"  It is obvious that we absolutely cannot believe that the situation will be controlled in the coming weeks. This reminds us that we sorely lack a strategy that integrates the different levels: national, federal and municipal.  "

Faced with the increase in the circulation of the virus, certain large cities like Sao Paulo or Belo Horizonte delayed until July 6 the opening of non-essential services such as bars or beauty salons.

Brazil has reported 990 deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of deaths related to the virus to 55,961, the Ministry of Health reported. The number of confirmed cases of coronavirus increased by 46,860
for a total of 1,274,974 cases, added the ministry.

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  • Brazil
  • Coronavirus

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