The US has become the first country in the world to record more than 2,000 deaths from the coronavirus in a single day, and the number of infections across America has now topped 500,000.

Stark figures show that 2,028 Americans died from coronavirus in a single day on Friday, taking the death toll to almost 19,000.

As the nation mourns its darkest day on record during the pandemic, the total number of Americans infected skyrocketed past half a million.

The death toll increased to 18,798 Friday and infections reached 505,478, as another 35,579 Americans tested positive.

The US is on track to become the deadliest nation in the world amid the outbreak, as it rapidly edges closer to Italy's death toll of 18,849.

In a matter of days, it has surpassed Spain's death toll (16,081) which was previously hardest-hit after Italy.

Worldwide, more than 100,000 people have now been killed in the pandemic.

New York state, which remains the epicenter of the US outbreak, made up almost half of the total death toll across the US and accounted for about a third of all deaths on Friday.

Deaths in New York increased by 777, bringing the total death toll to 7,844.

The number of cases in the state also rose by a staggering 10,575 to 170,512.

The neighboring state of New Jersey continues to be the second hardest-hit, with infections topping 54,588 and deaths reaching 1,932, after another 225 died Friday.

Fears are mounting that Michigan is on track to become a new major hotspot, as 205 deaths were recorded Friday, taking the total to 1,281.

The state now has 22,783 cases, after 1,279 new infections were confirmed.

America's deadliest day was even worse than experts could have predicted.

Forecasters at the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation brought forward the peak day of deaths by two days to Friday, predicting that 1,983 people would die from coronavirus.

Peak resource use for hospitals is predicted to occur on Saturday - the day after the peak death toll - where an estimated 86,379 beds, 17,707 ICU beds and 15,414 ventilators will be needed.

The total death toll from the pandemic is now expected to be 61,000 by August, according to the projections.

It comes as new US government figures show that a spike in coronavirus infections will occur in the summer if the current lockdown measures are lifted after 30 days as planned.

About 95 percent of the US remains on some form of lockdown after President Donald Trump issued guidelines that called for 30 days of measures to slow the spread of the virus.

America's deadliest day was even worse than experts could have predicted. Forecasters at the University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation brought forward the peak day of deaths by two days to Friday, predicting that 1,983 people would die from coronavirus

Peak resource use for hospitals is predicted to occur on Saturday - the day after the peak death toll - where an estimated 86,379 beds, 17,707 ICU beds and 15,414 ventilators will be needed

The total death toll from the pandemic is now expected to be 61,000 by August, according to the projections

The government projections, obtained by the New York Times, indicate that lifting the strict social distancing measures now in place will see a second wave surge in infections and deaths in about June and July.

If the current shelter-in-place orders are lifted on May 30, the death total is estimated to reach 200,000, according to the projections obtained from the departments of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services.

The death toll could reach 300,000 without any restrictions imposed to contain coronavirus - including school closings, shelter-in-place orders and social distancing.

Fatalities could reach 200,000 if the 30 day lockdown is lifted, schools remain closed until summer, 25 percent of the country continues working from home and some social distancing continues.

The projections, which are dated April 9, do not have dates for when shelter-in-place orders were delivered or specific dates for when spikes would hit.

The measures currently in place have seen most people isolating at home, schools shutter and businesses close down through at least the end of April.

White House officials said on Thursday they believe the US economy could start to reopen for normal business in May, despite health experts urging for continued social distancing measures to defeat the coronavirus.

Public health experts, including top infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci, say the measures are needed to control the fast-spreading virus.

Dr Fauci, a member of the White House coronavirus taskforce, on Friday warned it was too early to relax the lockdown even though hard-hit spots like New York are showing positive results in the battle against coronavirus.

The government projections indicate that lifting the strict social distancing measures now in place will see a surge in infections. The yellow depicted in the above graph assumes some social distancing is kept in place after the 30 days. The red in the graph assumes not additional measures are put in place after 30 days.

If the current shelter-in-place orders are lifted on May 30, the death total is estimated to reach 200,000, according to the projections obtained from the departments of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services

'What we're seeing right now is favorable signs,' Fauci said in an interview on CNN on Friday.

'We would want to see a clear indication that you were very, very clearly and strongly going in the right direction, because the one thing you don't want to do is you don't want to get out there prematurely and then wind up back in the same situation.

DEADLIEST DAYS IN CORONAVIRUS HOTSPOTS: UK - April 10 - 980 deaths Italy - March 27 - 969 deaths Spain - April 2 - 950 deaths Advertisement

'Now is no time to back off.'

Dr Fauci, who heads the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, warned that if the US 'prematurely' ends social distancing measures 'you're right back in the same situation'.

'The virus kind of decides whether or not it's going to be appropriate to open,' he said.

He said the number of new cases appeared to flattening the curve given hospitalizations and patients on ventilators in New York had decreased.

'We're going in the right direction, let's keep in that direction,' Dr Fauci said.

'Obviously we're looking for the kinds of things that would indicate that we can go forward in a gradual way to essentially reopen the country to a more normal way,' Fauci said, adding that it depended on a number of factors.

Bodies are moved to and from refrigerated morgue trailers at Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center, Brooklyn

A number of bodies were loaded into a refrigerated morgue truck in Brooklyn on Friday