The confirmed coronavirus death toll in the U.S. surpassed 30,000 on Thursday while cases surged to 639,733, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

The tracker says 30,990 people have now died in the country from COVID-19 since the start of the global health crisis.

The U.S. has the highest death toll in the world, followed by Italy with 21,645 dead although its population is just a fifth of that of the U.S.

Spain has recorded 19,130 deaths, followed by France with 17,167.