The United States on Wednesday recorded 3,000 deaths, highest daily death toll since April in 24 hours, reported AFP quoting John Hopkins University.

The surge in death numbers is believed to be due to extensive movement across the country for
the Thanksgiving holiday last month despite pleas to stay home to abate the
spread of the virus.

The country’s
total death toll reached 289,188, up by 3,071 in 24 hours. It also
registered nearly 220,481 new cases.

According to the COVID Tracking Project, California, where
some 33 million people were back under lockdown this week, saw more than 30,000
cases on Wednesday — the highest 24-hour tally in a US state.

The number of coronavirus infected patients hospitalised in the US continues to break records, hitting
106,000 on Wednesday.

Over the past two
weeks, the US has exceeded 2,000 COVID-related deaths per day several times,
rivaling tolls the worst-hit nation in the world saw in the early days of the
pandemic.