Ohio Lowers Flags To Mourn 500,000 COVID-19 Casualties

OHIO —On Monday, the United States saw its 500,000th death due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

To mark that somber milestone and mourn the deceased, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has ordered that flags across the state be flown at half-staff through the week. The flags will remain lowered until sunset on Friday.

Of the 500,000 deaths, more than 16,000 were Ohioans.

The death toll is already greater than the population of several major American metropolises, including Cleveland, Miami and Kansas City, a report from The Associated Press shows. The deaths are roughly equal to the number of Americans killed in World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War combined, and akin to a 9/11 every day for nearly six months.

Earlier, President Joe Biden had ordered that all U.S. flags on federal properties be lowered to half-staff for the week.

Read more: Biden Holds Memorial As U.S. Reaches 500,000 COVID Deaths

As of Monday, there had been more than 28.2 million cases of COVID-19 in America. In Ohio alone, there had been 955,378 confirmed coronavirus cases, and 16,874 COVID-19 related deaths since the pandemic began in spring 2020.