Trump Says US COVID-19 Peak In Deaths To ‘Hit In 2 Weeks,’ Extends Social Distancing Till April 30
By RT
US President Donald Trump has said that nationwide coronavirus guidelines would be extended for another month, citing model data suggesting that the US should brace for the peak in death rates in two weeks.
“The peak – the highest point of death rates…is likely to hit in two weeks,” Trump said as he was delivering an update on the coronavirus situation in the US on Sunday.
Citing estimates suggesting that if social distancing guidelines had not been introduced, 2.2 million people could have died as result of the pandemic in the US, Trump said that it was essential to prolong the existing measures until the end of April.
“Now we’re looking at numbers that are much, much lower than that,” he said.
Speaking on CNN’s ‘State of the Union’ earlier on Sunday, Trump’s Covid-19 advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci claimed that “between 100,000 and 200,000 deaths” may be coming, according to the latest predictions. Fauchi, however, noted that trying to forecast how rapidly the virus would spread in the US was like “chasing a moving target.”
In contrast with his previous rhetoric, Trump appeared to call for patience, warning against celebrating victory against the deadly disease that has claimed over 2,430 lives in the US before the outbreak stopped.
“Nothing would be worse than declaring victory before the victory is won. That would be the greatest loss of all.”
Asked whether it was possible that the guidelines would be extended even beyond April 30, Trump said that he hopes it would not be necessary.
