India reports another record high in COVID-19 cases as hospitals overwhelmed

India on Friday reported a new record spike in daily COVID-19 cases while the country grapples with the devastating wave pushing its health system to the brink.

The country’s health ministry recorded 386,452 cases over a 24-hour period and 3,498 deaths, CNBC reported. The figure is the highest daily caseload reported across the world, shattering the previous record established by the country just days prior. 

There have been more than 18.7 million cases and 208,000 deaths reported since the onset of the pandemic, making it the second hardest hit country in the world behind the United States, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

The World Health Organization (WHO) said that the surge is likely being fueled by multiple mutated variants of the coronavirus that are circulating in the country, CNBC noted. 

The spike in cases and deaths has stretched the limits of India’s health system, with hospitals reportedly facing dire shortages of critical tools like ventilators, oxygen and vaccine materials.

The U.S. began aid flights on Thursday in an effort to send India over $100 million worth of assistance. The aid will include oxygen cylinders, concentrators that obtain oxygen out of the air, 15 million N95 masks, 1 million rapid tests, and experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as supplies to help manufacture more than 20 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine.

On Thursday, the State Department called for all Americans in India to leave the country.

In a level four travel alert, the highest level that can be issued, the U.S. Embassy in India raised concern over the availability of medical care and pressed Americans to take advantage of the daily flights that are available out of India back to the U.S.

The State Department on Thursday also authorized voluntary departures for the families of U.S. government employees working in India.

A State Department spokesperson said that the authorization for families was made out of “an abundance of caution” as well as “current conditions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic and diminishing commercial flight options.”