COVID-19 deaths in New York double in three days to nearly 3,000

The death toll from COVID-19 is increasing at a devastating pace in New York.

The number of people who lost their lives has nearly doubled in just three days, from 1,550 on Tuesday to 2,935 on Friday.

Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Friday that more people in the US state died from the virus in the last 24 hours (562) than in the first 27 days of March.

There are now 102,863 confirmed cases across New York, with New York City alone accounting for more than 57,000 cases.

Cuomo is planning to issue an executive order on letting the state seize and redistribute ventilators from hospitals and companies that don’t need them to deal with the virus.