Russia hits new grim Covid-19 mortality milestone as more than 800 people die from virus in just 24 hours, despite vaccine rollout

A record number of Russians have died after testing positive for coronavirus, authorities announced on Thursday. A total of 808 deaths were logged in the country in the previous 24 hours, the most since the start of the pandemic.

The rise takes the total official death toll since last March to 168,049. The majority of deaths are concentrated in the two largest Russian cities, with Moscow announcing 56 fatalities for a total of 26,423. In St. Petersburg, a further 48 people were said to have passed away, taking the Baltic metropolis' overall number to 19,848. The true figure is likely far higher, and previous analyses have found a steep rise in the number of people recorded as dying of related conditions, like pneumonia, since the start of the pandemic.

As a result, figures released in July showed that the total number of deaths from all causes in 2020 was far higher than expected. According to the official data from state statistics agency Rosstat, the pandemic hit Russia harder in terms of mortality than comparable European nations.

A further 21,932 positive tests were recorded in the country, although a large number of infections are thought to go unrecorded, as people either have no symptoms, decline to get a test, or buy a rapid antigen analysis from the pharmacy instead of going to a clinic for a PCR. Cases have fallen steadily in previous weeks, from a high of around 25,000 a day in early July. Since then, cities like Moscow have relaxed restrictions, with the capital abolishing a scheme that required visitors to restaurants and cafes to present QR codes proving that they had been vaccinated, or else face being turned away.

Despite an initially slow start to the nationwide immunization program, with Russians ranking among the most skeptical in the world about signing up for a vaccine, the number of people receiving at least one dose has risen sharply in recent weeks, and around one in five people have already had both shots. Queues at clinics offering jabs grew after a number of regions began requiring staff in public-facing roles, such as hospitality and transport, to be vaccinated or risk being sent home without pay.

International travel restrictions and uncertainty over rules abroad have led to a sharp spike in the number of Russians spending the summer at home, with southern resorts like Sochi and Gelendzhik seeing colossal growth in the number of tourists.

At the end of July, Russia's Ministry of Economic Development published new statistics showing that the country had returned to pre-pandemic levels, recovering fully from the short-term shock of the virus. Crucially, the growth has been driven not by the oil and gas sector, but by agriculture, manufacturing and construction.

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