Support The Moscow Times!

Russia Sees Record Virus Deaths Despite Falling Cases

The country confirmed 820 coronavirus deaths in the past 24 hours, an all-time high since the start of the pandemic. Denis Grishkin / Moskva News Agency

Russia reported its highest daily coronavirus death count Thursday as cases continue to decline and major regions lift restrictions they had reintroduced during the summer surge.

The government’s Covid-19 information center said that 820 people have died over the past 24 hours.

The new record fatality count beats the previous one-day record of 819 deaths set on Aug. 14.

The latest figures bring Russia’s total officially reported Covid fatalities to 179,243, the world’s sixth-highest and Europe’s highest death toll.

Official figures published by Russia’s statistics agency show that the country’s excess deaths topped 531,000 since the start of the pandemic, according to The Moscow Times’ analysis.

Russia’s coronavirus information center also reported 19,630 new cases Thursday, a decline in infections from the peak of almost 28,000 in mid-July.

Russia has reported the world’s fourth-highest total number of coronavirus infections at more than 6.8 million.

The surge in deaths comes amid Russia’s slow vaccination drive among a vaccine-skeptic population despite more than half of the country’s regions mandating inoculation for certain workers.

Russia administered fewer than 500,000 first and second vaccine doses for the first time in two months Wednesday as numbers of newly vaccinated Russians continue to decline, according to analysis of available data.

Only 43 million Russians, or 29% of the population, have received a first vaccine dose and 35.5 million, or 24%, are fully vaccinated, the available data states.

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysis and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more