Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro said he was hopeful Tuesday’s figures would show “the worst [was] over”. But the daily numbers came out shortly after he spoke: a record increase of 600 deaths. The country is now approaching a total of 8,000 deaths. The mayor of one of the worst-affected cities, Manaus in the Amazon, has sent a letter to world leaders, including UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and US President Donald Trump, asking for help securing equipment to combat the outbreak.
Uruguay is beginning to resume activity in public offices and shops in the capital, Montevideo. Those who do not need to work have been asked to remain at home. The government says it was encouraged to allow more economic activity after a pilot project tested 400 construction workers and all the results came back negative. The small country (670 confirmed cases, 17 deaths) has resisted a full lockdown, unlike its neighbour Argentina.
Colombia’s mandatory quarantine will be extended by a further two weeks, although some sectors will be allowed to return to work. President Iván Duque also said children aged between six and 17 will be able to go outside three times a week for 30 minutes, starting 11 May. The country has recorded 8,613 cases and 378 deaths.
