New York Tragedy: Flags at Half-Staff for Thousands of Dead

(Patria) – The state of New York, which is the epicenter of the coronavirus epidemic in the USA, is experiencing one of its most difficult days since the start of the crisis.

Even older medical staff with many years of work experience are stunned by the speed at which patients' conditions deteriorate, as well as the rapid onset of death.

The number of confirmed infections in New York state alone jumped to 150,000 on Wednesday, but is certainly much higher if asymptomatic or untested cases are taken into account, as well as those who died at home without being reported.

- Every number represents someone's face, said New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who ordered flags to be lowered to half-staff across the state in honor of the victims.

Medical staff on the front lines explain that patients can seem fine one moment, and then simply expire the next, and that this happens equally to vulnerable categories with chronic illnesses, as well as to the young and healthy.

- Patients can seem fine, feel fine, and then when you turn around – they no longer respond, says Diana Torres, a nurse at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, adding that it makes her 'paranoid' and that she is afraid to leave a room with patients for fear they might die while she is not there.

According to official data, there are currently at least 435,160 infected individuals in the USA, and nearly 15,000 have died. 22,891 people have recovered.

For the second day in a row, an average of 1,900 people are dying every 24 hours in the USA.

Despite the grim statistics, Cuomo claims that the number of new hospitalizations is falling, and that social distancing measures are making a difference.

New York state is one of 42 US states that have introduced a 'stay-at-home' measure, and all non-essential businesses have been closed.

Although necessary, the emergency measures have, as in other countries, led to a halt in the US economy, causing unemployment and a struggle for survival. Experts predict that a recession is inevitable despite the financial support of the US government.

US officials warn Americans to expect an even higher number of deaths in the coming weeks.