US daily Covid-19 deaths rise by more than 2,400 on eve of Thanksgiving

Travel for family gatherings on major national holiday raises fears of another surge in infections

Medical staff members work in the nursing station at the United Memorial Medical Centre in Houston, Texas. Numbers on the wall indicate the days since the hospital opened its Covid-19 intensive care uShow more

The US on Wednesday reported more than 2,400 deaths from Covid-19 in 24 hours, according to the Johns Hopkins University – the highest daily toll in six months.

As the Thanksgiving holiday began, the 2,439 fatalities recorded in the previous 24 hours raised the country's death toll from the coronavirus pandemic to 262,080. It also registered nearly 200,000 new Covid-19 cases.

Travel appeared to be down the night before Thanksgiving, when Americans usually criss-cross the country to be with family and friends for a feast marking one of their most important national holidays.

In recent days, images on social media of crowded airports fuelled concerns Americans were not taking the warnings seriously.

But one day before Thursday's celebrations, officials and passengers in Los Angeles noted an eerie quiet compared with previous years.

Joe Biden, the president-elect, cited accelerating plans to deliver a vaccine as he appealed for his weary countrymen to dig deep.

"There is real hope, tangible hope. So hang on. Don't let yourself surrender to the fatigue," Mr Biden said in a televised Thanksgiving address.

"You will get your lives back. Life is going to return to normal. That will happen. This will not last for ever."

Gallery: the world grapples with a second Covid-19 wave