Russia reports record COVID deaths for 3rd straight day

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian authorities have reported a record number of coronavirus deaths for a third day in a row. Russia’s state coronavirus task force reported 1,254 virus deaths Friday, up from the previous record of 1,251 registered the day before. The task force also reported 37,156 new confirmed cases. The daily new infections in recent weeks appeared to have taken a downward trend but still remain higher than during previous surges of the virus. The latest surge in infections and deaths comes amid low vaccination rates and lax public attitudes toward taking precautions. In total, Russia has reported over 9.2 million confirmed infections and more than 261,000 COVID-19 deaths, by far the highest death toll in Europe.