Catastrophic: Brazil records 4,195 COVID-19 deaths in single day

For the first time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Brazil recorded more than 4,000 coronavirus deaths in a single day, a new dark milestone for the nation as President Jair Bolsonaro continues to reject federal health limitations.

Ministry of Health Brazil declared on Tuesday that 4,195 people had died from the virus in a single day.

The country has now reported more than 366,000 deaths, as per to Johns Hopkins University figures - and is only behind the United States.

'This is a nuclear reactor that has caused a chain reaction and is out of control. "This is a biological Fukushima," Dr Miguel Nicolelis, a Brazilian physician and professor at Duke University.

Brazilian hospitals crosswise the country are being drawn to their limit as the rate of infection continues to climb. Younger people become ill and need medical care, as this outbreak of the pandemic is characterized by more easily transmitted strains of the virus.

"We are in a horrible situation, and we do not see effective measures by state or federal governments" to return, "epidemiologist Ethel Maciel of Federal University Espirito Santo told AFP news agency.

While less than ten percent of Brazilians have so far received the first dose of COVID-19 vaccines, Maciel said 'the only way to slow down the virus' extremely rapid spread is an effective exclusion for at least 20 days.

Meanwhile, Brazil's far-right populist president continues to refuse public health restrictions such as wearing a mask and lock, even amid increasing pressure on his government to account for the country's coronavirus crisis.

Bolsonaro swore in a new health minister last month - his fourth since the pandemic began - and carried out a government reform in which he replaced his foreign, justice and defense ministers. He later also appointed new heads of the country's army, navy and air force.

Bolsonaro said the economic consequences of coronavirus closure are worse than the virus.

On Tuesday, the Brazilian economy minister said the government believed that "Brazil could work again in two to three months".

"Of course, economic activity is likely to decline, but it will be much, much less than the decline we suffered last year ... and much, much shorter," Paulo Guedes said during an online event. But epidemiologists and other experts have made far more bleak forecasts.

The University of Washington recently concluded that coronavirus-related ends in April alone could be 100,000, while the country's total death toll could reach nearly 563,000 by July.

"If anything is not done to avoid this disaster, we will definitely make this prediction," said Dr Jamal Suleiman, a specialist in infectious diseases at Emilio Ribas Hospital in Sao Paulo.