US reaches grim milestone of 250,000 coronavirus deaths

More than a quarter-million Americans have died from complications of COVID-19, the disease caused by a coronavirus that is tearing massive holes in states across the nation, as health experts warn the death toll could double in the coming months.

NBC News reported the death toll crossed the 250,000 mark on Wednesday. Other counts maintained by Johns Hopkins University and The New York Times were slightly below that figure.

The United States continues to be the epicenter of the pandemic, accounting for a hugely disproportionate share of cases and deaths even as the virus begins spreading more widely in European countries.