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'SPREADING LIKE FIRE'

US coronavirus cases soar past 300,000 – up 32,000 in just a day – as deaths top 8,400

US coronavirus cases soared past 300,000 Saturday, after the number of infections exploded overnight by a staggering 32,000. 

have died from the illness as of April 5 with hard-hit accounting for more than a quarter of the country's related deaths.

President Donald Trump confirmed there would be a lot of deaths in the next two weeksCredit: AP Photo/Patrick Semansky
Nurses strike about their lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) outside of Montefiore hospital in the BronxCredit: EPA/JUSTIN LANE
 Bodies are transported outside of Wyckoff Hospital in Brooklyn
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Bodies are transported outside of Wyckoff Hospital in BrooklynCredit: Reuters
 Bodies are seen inside Brooklyn's Wyckoff Hospital on April 4, 2020
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Bodies are seen inside Brooklyn's Wyckoff Hospital on April 4, 2020Credit: Reuters

The death toll jumped up to 1,497 in a matter of 24 hours.

There are now at least 312,245 confirmed coronavirus cases across the United States.

Governor Andrew Cuomo confirmed that officials recorded 788 deaths in 24 hours - the biggest surge in fatalities in the state since the crisis began, upping the total to 3,565 Saturday.

Out of the 788 NY deaths, 757 of those were reported to be in New York City alone.

Not even the NYPD is invincible to the deadly virus as 18,000 members have tested positive and 10 have been declared dead.

During a press briefing, Cuomo compared the infection rate of the killer bug to a fire spreading.

"The fire, it doesn't max out in one place, but it consumes where it is and it's moving out," he said - hours before confirmed

But it's not just the Empire State that has been rocked by the global pandemic, which first emerged in Wuhan,

 Bodies are placed inside a makeshift morgue outside Wyckoff Hospital in Brooklyn
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Bodies are placed inside a makeshift morgue outside Wyckoff Hospital in BrooklynCredit: Reuters
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 Bodies of the deceased have been placed into orange body bags and transported into refrigerated trucks
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Bodies of the deceased have been placed into orange body bags and transported into refrigerated trucksCredit: Rex Features

has now surpassed with more than and at least, according to John Hopkins data, versus CA's.

Detroit is set to replace NYC as the new urban epicenter with infections topping 6,700 in Wayne County - and 223 deaths statewide.

Trump confirmed there would be a lot of death in the next fortnight during Saturday's press briefing.

NYC hospitals have been battered by the virus, which has left many facilities unable to cope with surging cases and the rising death roll.

Crematoriums have upped their hours as the bodies pile up, and healthcare officials scramble to convert refrigerated trucks into makeshift morgues.

Cuomo - who has repeatedly asked the Feds for more than 30,000 ventilators - confirmed 1,000 ventilators donated by the Chinese government would arrive in JFK today.

also sent 140 of the critical respiratory machines to add to NY's ever dwindling stockpile.

Health care officials watch as a vehicle approaches a testing site at the Michigan State Fairgrounds in DetroitCredit: AP Photo/Carlos Osorio
Makeshift morgue for coronavirus victims set up outside NYC hospitalCredit: The Mega Agency
Sailors treat a patient aboard the hospital ship USNS Mercy deployed to treat non-COVID patients in Los AngelesCredit: acob Miciano/Handout via REUTERS

The Trump administration sent around 1,000 military medical personnel to man the 2,500-bed Jacob Javits Center in NYC, where the healthcare system has been battered by surging cases and a lack of critical supplies.

But have also seen a rise in COVID cases, with scientists from the identifying significant clusters in parts of Georgia, Arkansas and Mississippi, among other areas.

Researchers believe they could be disproportionately hit by given their aging population and poor healthcare facilities, 

Trump today insinuated Cuomo left his "cupboards bare" with regard to ventilators as he praised Washington state - where the first US case emerged - and California Governor Gavin Newsom for their efforts.

The US has and China to become the global coronavirus epicenter.

Despite the increase in cases and deaths, the president told major league sports commissioners on Saturday that he believes the should start on time in September.

He added that he wants fans back in stadiums and arenas by August and September.

 The red spots reveal areas that up until now haven't been seen as hotspots
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The red spots reveal areas that up until now haven't been seen as hotspotsCredit: Amanda Montañez; Source: Marynia Kolak, Xun Li and Qinyun Lin Center for Spatial Data Scienc
USNS Mercy leaves the Naval Station San Diego for the Port of Los Angeles to aid local medical facilitiesCredit: REUTERS/Mike Blake
 Idaho City was found to be a hidden coronavirus hotspot
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Idaho City was found to be a hidden coronavirus hotspotCredit: Alamy
Army personnel from Kentucky and Texas are briefed on medical equipment in NYC's Javit's centerCredit: Andrew Kelly/Reuters
Samaritan's Purse Hospital is setting up a 68-bed field hospital and a special respiratory treatment unit in Central ParkCredit: ZUMA Press, Inc. / Alamy Live News
A view of empty Bourbon street in the French Quarter of New OrleansCredit: Getty Images - Getty
Cuomo revealed the death toll exploded once more
A man rides his bicycle past a mural in Los AngelesCredit: ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images
Cots are set up at a possible COVID-19 coronavirus treatment site Wednesday in San Mateo, CaliforniaCredit: AP Photo/Ben Margot, Pool
Donald Trump warns the US is about to enter a 'very deadly period'


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