The Americas are bearing the brunt of the global coronavirus pandemic at present, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said, with North and South America currently having four of the 10 worst hit countries in the world.

The disease was “highly active” in Central and South America, the WHO’s top emergency expert Mike Ryan said, highlighting problems in Brazil and Mexico.

The current situation in Brazil, now one of the global hot-spots for the virus, was of increasing concern especially in heavily-populated cities, he told a press conference.

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