Coronavirus continues to spread in Latin America

Peru records 3,537 new cases in 24 hours; Ecuador sees 634 additional infections, with 3,059 in Colombia

Coronavirus cases and deaths continued to rise Saturday across Latin America as the region struggles to contain the spread of infections.

Peru 

Peru reported 199 new deaths from Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, according to health officials.

The death toll climbed to 7,660, while the number of confirmed cases rose by 3,537 to 247,925.

At least 135,520 people have recovered from the virus.

The country reported its first case March 6 and first death March 20.

Latin America accounts for 40% of daily global deaths

Ecuador 

Ecuador reported 69 more deaths from the coronavirus, said the Health Ministry.

The death toll climbed to 4,156, while the number of confirmed cases rose by 634 to 49,731.

Colombia 

In Colombia, 95 people died from the coronavirus in the past 24 hours, its highest single-day number for fatalities, according to national media.

The number of fatalities rose to 2,045.

Cases in the country stand at 63,276 with 3,059 new infections, while 23,988 people have recovered.

Since first appearing in Wuhan, China last December, the novel coronavirus has spread to at least 188 countries and regions.

Mexico reports record tally of 5,222 new coronavirus cases

The pandemic has killed more than 458,700 people worldwide, with an excess of 8.6 million confirmed cases and greater than 4.2 million recoveries, according to figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University in the US.