US total coronavirus cases nearing 70,000

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - The total number of coronavirus infections in the U.S. is rapidly approaching 70,000 as the country struggles to rein in the outbreak, according to a running tally being compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

In all, the school the state of Maryland has counted 69,210 confirmed cases, as well as 1,046 deaths. Nearly a fifth of confirmed fatalities, 192, have been registered in New York City, which has a daunting 17,856 infections.

The next highest death toll, 94, comes from King County in Washington state where the virus spread quickly in a nursing home for the elderly outside Seattle before spreading more widely in the community.

The U.S. is now the country with the third-most infections after Italy and China, which have 74,386 and 81,782 cases, respectively.

After first appearing in Wuhan, China, in December, the virus has spread to at least 175 countries and territories, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins.

More than 463,000 cases have been reported worldwide, with the global death toll above 22,100. Nearly 114,000 people have successfully recovered, according to the data.