Go Nakamura/Getty Images)BY: WILLIAM MANSELL AND ELLA TORRES, ABC NEWS
(NEW YORK) — The novel coronavirus pandemic has now killed more than 600,000 people worldwide.
Over 14.1 million people across the globe have been diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the new respiratory virus, according to data compiled by the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University. The actual numbers are believed to be much higher due to testing shortages, many unreported cases and suspicions that some governments are hiding or downplaying the scope of their nations’ outbreaks.
The United States has become the worst-affected country, with more than 3.6 million diagnosed cases and at least 139,266 deaths.
Here is how the news is developed Friday. All times Eastern. Check back for updates.
9:14 a.m.: Miami Beach establishes 8 p.m. curfew
Miami Beach residents are now under an 8 p.m. curfew amid rising cases in Florida.
The curfew which went into effect Saturday at 12:01 a.m., is two hours before the countywide curfew and will run through July 24.
All businesses in the area, including commercial, entertainment and restaurants, must close by 8 p.m. Take-out will also be prohibited from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m., but kitchens can remain open during those times if they are providing delivery services.
8:37 a.m.: 25 million infected in Iran, president says
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani said that a startling 25 million Iranians have been infected with the coronavirus, a figure that is much higher than the official toll of some 271,000 and surpasses the current confirmed cases globally.
Rouhani said the 25 million was based off a new Health Ministry report, but did not detail why there was such a discrepancy.
The president also said that another 35 million people “will be at risk.” Iran has a population of more than 80 million.
“Our estimate is that as of now 25 million Iranians have been infected with this virus and about 14,000 have lost their dear lives,” Rouhani said in a televised speech.
Iran’s official toll of confirmed cases is 271,606, according to Johns Hopkins data, putting them in the top 10 countries hardest hit. Globally, there are more than 14 million confirmed cases.
The 25 million infected would make Iran the hardest-hit country. The United States currently holds that position, with more than 3.6 million.
7:02 a.m.: Florida Sheriff uses chopper to break up ‘COVID-19 parties’
The Osceola County Sheriff’s Office in Florida announced it is using helicopters to patrol and break up “COVID-19 parties.”
The sheriff’s office released aerial footage from the helicopter Friday showing a large gathering happening in the street and then deputies pulling up to the gathering to break it up.
Sheriff Russ Gibson told ABC affiliate WFTV-TV that many young people are gathering at a house party to either plan to catch the coronavirus or not care if they get infected.
Gibson said his department plans to increase its patrols this weekend and focus on three subdivisions in the west side of the county where he said people are renting homes for the weekend and having large groups over for house parties, according to WFTV.
The large gatherings come at a time when Florida is seeing a sharp surge in coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths.
Florida has more than 327,000 diagnosed cases, with at least 4,805 deaths.
The Sunshine state added 11,548 new cases on Friday, the third consecutive day the state has had a single-day case total over 10,000. Friday also marks the third consecutive day where the state reported over 120 deaths. Over 9,000 patients are also currently hospitalized, nearly 1,900 of them in Miami-Dade county.
4:51 a.m.: US death count up 19%
The number of new coronavirus cases is up 19.7% from last week and the national death count is up 19% during the same period, according to an internal Federal Emergency Management Agency memo obtained by ABC News.
Those figures aren’t the only increases. The national fatality rate is now 3.8% and the test positivity rate saw a slight increase in the last seven days, coming in at 10.1%. It was 9.8% during the week prior, according to the FEMA. memo.
Other concerning rises include that 13% of COVID-19 inpatients are on a ventilator, which is the first weekly rise in this stat since early June. Also, 32% of in-use ventilators across the U.S. are occupied by COVID-19 patients. At the coronavirus peak in April, it was 45%. In early June, it was 17%, according to FEMA.
The number of available ICU beds also continues to be a problem. The memo said that 19% of all medical facilities in the U.S. have more than 80% of their ICU beds filled.
Two of the hardest-hit states, Florida and Texas, are still not seeing a slowdown in cases. From July 8-14, Florida had its highest test-positivity rate to date at 17.9%. It also had a record daily death toll of 156 on July 16. Hospitalizations in the sunshine state, according to the FEMA memo, are expected to peak in 10 days.
Meanwhile in Texas, the state had record highs of cases and deaths on July 15.
This grim news is not exclusive to the U.S., COVID-19 cases reached 14 million across the globe Friday. The world hit 10 million on June 28 — a 40% increase in less than three weeks.
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