When Atherstone's first case was recorded some 300 people were confirmed Covid-19 cases in the UK. Tonight the official figure is closing in on 40,000

NUB NEWS BRINGS YOU ITS NIGHTLY REPORT ON VIRUS UK AND WORD FROM AROUND THE GLOBE

AUSTRALIA'S chief medical officer Brendan Murphy spoke out today in words that we've all probably been thinking – that many more of the world's population have had Covid-19.

Officially the figure tonight stands at 1.04 million but he reckons the global caseload could be TEN times that. Yes, 10 million.

Mr Murphy is speaking from a position of strength and is "totally confident" of infection rates as opposed to recorded-only cases.

Australia have had 5,350 people infected with only 28 deaths – a case fertility rate (CFR) of 0.52 per cent. And its infection fatality rate (IFR) – the death toll against those who have actually been tested and confirmed – could well be close to the same set of statistics.

America saw its worst day against the invading virus – 716 more deaths and 20,000 extra confirmed cases.

Number of deaths stand at 6,786 with more than a quarter of the world's recorded cases – at 265,000.

Nearly half of those deaths are in New York state and City Mayor Bill de Blasio is talking about this Sunday being 'D-Day' for frontline health workers.

Inaction, he warns, could lead to hundreds or thousands of unnecessary deaths.

Already the state has seen 102,000 cases and just short of 3,000 deaths – up nearly 600 in the last 24 hours.

Just like the UK, lack of ventilators and personal protection equipment is a key issue and Governor Andrew M. Cuomo argues: "It's unbelievable to me that in New York, in the United States of America, we can't make these materials, and we're all shopping China, and competing against each other."

But in terms sheer percentages it's twice as dangerous to be in New Orleans – and overweight.

For people in the Louisiana city are dying of the virus and twice the rate of New York and experts are blaming obesity as a serious contributing factor.

Orleans Parish, which takes in New Orleans, reported 125 confirmed Covid-19 deaths as of Thursday, the equivalent of 32 coronavirus deaths per 100,000 people.

New York City's rate is 16.

Elsewhere, Ecuador has an official death toll of 145 in 3,300 confirmed cases but Government officials are now claiming 400 bodies have been recovered over the last few days in the port city of Guayaquil.

No one knows how many people are infected, with reports of very limited testing for Covid-19.

At the other end of the control scale is South Korea.

And it must have done something right early on. With more than 10,000 cases it recorded 174 deaths at a mortality rate of around 1.7 per cent and its deaths per million population is 3/DPMP.

With a population not dissimilar to the UK (51 million against 63 million) it seems determined to keep the screw on coronavirus – strengthening border controls and putting 19,000 recently-returned nationals from overseas in quarantine.

Authorities are isolating and testing passengers arriving with symptoms at airports while denying entry of anyone refusing to accept quarantines or download an app that requires users to report their daily health status.

The consistent surge in the UK's daily figures for the virus is scary to say the least.

Deaths up another 684 on the previous announcement with 4,450 new cases.

When Atherstone's first case was recorded 25 days ago on March 9, some 300 people were confirmed Covid-19 cases in the UK.

Tonight the official figure is closing in on 40,000 – at 38,168 with 3,605 deaths.

Our death toll from Covid-19 is now higher than the reported number of deaths in both Iran and the original virus epicentre Huwan, in China.

Worryingly our case fatality rate – at 9.45 per cent – means only Italy's is worse in the entire world at 12.25 per cent.

China for all its 81,000 cases has a mortality rate of four per cent and America's is 2.5 per cent.

There are warnings in Britain that NHS staff may have to decide who to keep on a ventilator – taking them away from dying patients and transferring to ones with the virus who have a better chance of surviving its consequences.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is still staying in even though his self-isolation period is over.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock has not denied Easter will be the peak of the virus in Britain.

Encouragingly more than a fifth of the world has recovered from coronavirus but the Communist Party chief of Wuhan, the Chinese city where the outbreak began, had a warning for us all today.

He said the risk of a resurgence there remains high – and that authorities must maintain prevention and control measures.

It's a strange old world in Lockdown Long Street.

As we enter the third weekend of restrictions we would have unimaginable in our lifetime, we must continue to rigidly follow those #StayHomeSaveLives.

If you're ready to scream, then even if you're not a golfer, try driving at an imaginary golf ball in the back garden– without balls of course – before heading back inside to tackle the 19th hole.

#StaySafe, keep saluting the NHS and all those other key workers in shops and the like who are putting themselves in harm's way to fight this demon.

Hopefully, you'll be back in the morning to see what has been thrown up by the incredible axis on which your local world is currently spinning . . .