Drone footage which allegedly shows mass graves in Brazil shows the horrifying toll the coronavirus pandemic has taken across the country.
In Sao Paulo, the worst-hit city, endless rows and rows of open plots can be seen at the Formosa Cemetery.
Brazil, this week, became the country with the second most infections worldwide after the United States, with more than 330,000 confirmed cases.
The footage comes as the World Health Organisation Emergencies Director Mike Ryan told a virtual news conference that South America was a new ‘epicentre’ for the disease.
The World Health Organization Emergencies Director Mike Ryan told a virtual news conference that South America is a new ‘epicentre’ for the disease.
Mr Ryan said: ‘In a sense, South America has become a new epicentre for the disease. We have seen many South American countries with increasing numbers of cases.
The country’s right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro opposes lockdown measures and has suggested that antimalarial drugs such as chloroquine can fight the virus.
The drug has also been championed by US President Donald Trump – who announced on Monday he has been taking it himself – although no conclusions over its effectiveness in treating Covid-19 have been reached.
The actual number of cases and deaths is believed to be higher than the official figures disclosed by the government, as the testing capacity of Latin America’s largest country still lags.
Brazil’s far-right President Jair Bolsonaro has been fiercely criticised for his handling of the outbreak, which has led to the exit of two health ministers amid his insistence in opposing social distancing measures while advocating the use of unproven drugs for treatment.
All Inputs Reuters
Indiatimes cannot assess the veracity of the video at this time.
