The U.S. death toll from COVID-19 reached a somber milestone on Tuesday, surpassing the number of American fatalities in the Vietnam War. More than 58,300 Americans have died from the disease, compared to the 58,220 deaths from the Vietnam War, according to the National Archives.
Workers wearing personal protective equipment bury bodies April 9 in a trench on Hart Island in the Bronx, N.Y.
(John Minchillo / Associated Press)
Gravediggers carry a casket April 7 at Mount Richmond Cemetery on Staten Island in New York.
(David Goldman / Associated Press)
Wanda DeSelle, 76, died of COVID-19 on April 3 in Madera, Calif. Funeral director Sarah Smith, far right, and other members of Jay Chapel funeral home bring the body to the grave site on April 8. Immediate family members had to remain in their cars as DeSelle was buried.
(Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times)
Family members load the casket carrying Charles Jackson Jr., who died from COVID-19, April 15 at the Angelus Funeral Home in Los Angeles.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
James Plummer, funeral director at Angelus Funeral Home in Los Angeles, sprinkles rose petals over the casket as Nicholas Jackson, center, mourns his father, Charles Jackson Jr.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
Gloves worn by pallbearers are draped on the casket of Charles Jackson Jr., who died of COVID-19, on April 15 at the Inglewood Park Cemetery in Los Angeles.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)