Virus marches on in Italy, Iran as medical supplies dwindle

SOAVE, Italy (AP) — Italy, Iran and the United States reported soaring new death tolls as the coronavirus pandemic marched relentlessly across the globe Sunday, prompting a scramble in hard-hit regions to set up more hospital beds and replenish the dwindling medical supplies needed to keep health workers safe.

Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte went on TV near midnight, announcing that he was tightening the country's lockdown and shutting down all production facilities except those providing essential goods and services. While he cautioned citizens to be calm and patient, insisting there ‘’is no alternative,'' scientists elsewhere released graphics showing that avoiding even one infection means that scores more are avoided down the line.

Italy announced its biggest day-to-day increase of infections, which rose to 53,000 people, with nearly 800 new deaths. As bodies pile up in Italian hospitals, morgues and churches, and as medical workers plead for more help, there is no sign yet that Italy is taming its arc of its contagion. Italy now has 4,825 deaths, more than all of China, where the virus first emerged late last year.

In Britain, where Sunday was Mother’s Day, the government had a stark message for millions of citizens: Visiting your mother could kill her. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson implored citizens to forego traditional family visits and Sunday lunches.

“We cannot disguise or sugar coat the threat,” he said. “If your mother is elderly or vulnerable, then I am afraid all the statistics show that she is much more likely to die from coronavirus.”

"This time the best thing is to ring her, video call her, Skype her, but to avoid any unnecessary physical contact or proximity," he added.

Iran's supreme leader refused U.S. assistance Sunday to fight the new coronavirus, citing an unfounded...