The total US death toll from the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic topped 4,000 early Wednesday, more than double the number from three days earlier, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. The number of deaths was 4,076 — more than twice the 2,010 recorded late Saturday. More than 40 per cent of recorded deaths nationally were in New York state, the Johns Hopkins data showed.

The US also exceeded the number of deaths in China, where the pandemic emerged in December. The number of confirmed US cases has reached 1,89,510, the most in the world, though Italy and Spain have recorded more fatalities. After initially downplaying the COVID-19 threat in the early stages of the US outbreak, President Trump warned of 'a very, very painful two weeks' to come for the country on Tuesday.