Rio de Janeiro, Mar. 18, 2021, SPA -- Brazil has set a new daily record in coronavirus infections as the spiralling outbreak puts major stress on the nation's hospitals, dpa reported. The Health Ministry in Brasilia reported 90,303 infections over the past 24 hours on Wednesday evening. The previous high was 87,843 new cases on January 7. This brings the total number of people confirmed to have been infected with the coronavirus in the largest country in Latin America to 11.6 million, while 284,775 related deaths have been reported. Brazil, a nation of 210 million which began vaccinations in January, is one of the countries hardest hit by the pandemic. It is only behind the United States in deaths and infections. According to the federally-funded biomedical research centre Fiocruz, Brazil is experiencing the "largest health and hospital collapse in history." According to Rio-based Fiocruz, utilization of public intensive care beds for Covid-19 patients is 80 per cent or higher in 24 of 26 states and the capital district of Brasilia. --SPA 20:32 LOCAL TIME 17:32 GMT 0022 www.spa.gov.sa/w1527052