Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro greets supporters at a pro-government demonstration. -CNN Brazil confirmed its first coronavirus-related death on Tuesday, as President Jair Bolsonaro continued to deride efforts to mitigate the outbreak as "hysteria."
A 62-year-old man, who tested positive for the virus, died on Monday four days after being admitted to a hospital in Sao Paulo, officials said. The man, who suffered from hypertension and diabetes, caught the virus domestically, they said, suggesting community transmission of the virus in the South American nation.
After announcing its first case on February 26, infection numbers have risen to 291. The figure is expected to multiply in the coming days, but Brazilians continue to get mixed messages from the top.
In an interview on Sunday with CNN affiliate CNN Brasil, Bolsonaro called preventive measures, such as banning mass events, "hysteria," and said that the economy came first. "When you ban football and other things, you fall into hysteria. Banning this and that isn't going to contain the spread," he said.
"We should take steps, the virus could turn into a fairly serious issue. But the economy has to function because we can't have a wave of unemployment," he added.
Hours before, Bolsonaro appeared to shrug off advice from his medical team to self-isolate after several members of his delegation to Florida tested positive for the virus.
--CNN, Brasilia
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