Detroit mayor sounds statewide alarm as coronavirus cases surge

FILE PHOTO: Commercial trucks cross over the Ambassador Bridge, during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, at the international border crossing, which connects with Windsor, Ontario, in Detroit, Michigan, U.S., March 18, 2020. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook

DETROIT (Reuters) - A surge in coronavirus cases in Detroit has put Michigan on track to be one of the U.S. states hardest hit by the pandemic, the city's mayor said on Thursday, adding that hospitals were scrambling to increase capacity.

As the U.S. death toll from the virus passed 1,000 people, hospitals and government authorities in New York, New Orleans and other hot spots have grappled with a rush of cases and a shortage of supplies, staff and sick beds.