Russia reported a record daily spike in the number of people infected by the coronavirus — an increase of nearly 8,000 cases — one day after the country’s Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin announced he had contracted the illness, according to a report Friday.
The country’s nationwide infection rate rose from a reported 106,498 to 114,431 — up a total of 7,933 cases, or 7.4% — between Thursday and Friday, according to Reuters.
Russia also reported that 96 people had died of COVID-19 in the 24-hour span, raising its overall death toll to 1,169.
The increase comes after 54-year-old Mishustin told President Vladimir Putin on Thursday that he had been diagnosed with the virus and planned to self-quarantine.
The nation had been less hard-hit by the outbreak than other areas until recently — and Putin has warned the worst is yet to come.
Mishustin was the first high-ranking Russian official to announce he had contracted the deadly bug. The country has been on lockdown since late March.
Russia reports record spike in coronavirus cases a day after prime minister gets sick
