Northern Brazilian state declares curfew over virus
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Amazonas state in northern Brazil on Thursday announced a curfew to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus, as cases soar and hospitals run out of beds and oxygen supplies. Authorities warned of a dire situation across the vast state. In its capital Manaus, the health system has been pushed to breaking point. The city has “run out of oxygen and some health centers have become a type of suffocation chamber,” Jessem Orellana, from the Fiocruz-Amazonia scientific investigation institute, told AFP. Amazonas governor Wilson Lima said the state was “in the most critical moment of the pandemic.” The 7:00 pm to 6:00 am curfew will begin Friday. According to official figures, Manaus recorded 198 deaths on Wednesday, the fourth day straight it had set a new record. Oxygen is needed to treat COVID-19 patients suffering from respiratory complications. Amazonas produces “significant quantities of oxygen, but …