Brasilia, Feb 1 (IANS): Brazil has registered 27,756 coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, which increased the total to 9,204,731, according to the Ministry of Health.

In the same period, the country also registered 559 additional fatalities, bringing the death toll to 224,504, Xinhua news agency reported.

Brazil currently accounts for the third highest number of caseload after the US and India, while the country's death toll is the second largest after the US.

The state of Sao Paulo has been the most affected by the virus and is on high alert, but this weekend, crowds of people gathered on the state's main beaches, despite an official order forbidding such activity.

This month, 310,727 cases have been registered in Sao Paulo, for a total of 1,777,368, as well as 6,237 deaths, for a total of 53,034.

Rio de Janeiro has also registered increased crowds, with more than 1,000 people recently gathering to watch the sunrise at the famous Ipanema beach.

Brazil confirmed this month a new variant of the coronavirus in the state of Amazonas, which has increased pressure on the state's health system, especially in the state capital of Manaus, which faced a lack of oxygen supplies to treat Covid-19 patients.

The state of Amazonas is currently under a curfew to prevent crowds and slow the spread of the virus.