The United States of America recorded nearly 2,000 novel coronavirus deaths for the second day in a row on Wednesday.

This new figure is according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University as of 8:30 pm Wednesday (0030 GMT Thursday), the Agence France Presse, AFP, reports.

The record-breaking figure of 1,973 deaths (slightly higher than the previous day’s toll of 1,939) brings the total number of US fatalities to 14,695.

The US death toll now exceeds that of Spain, which has suffered 14,555 deaths, but has not surpassed Italy, whose toll stands at 17,669.