U.S. surpasses 100,000 COVID-19 deaths

A woman photographs a memorial for those who have died from the coronavirus outside The Green-Wood Cemetery, during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Brooklyn borough of New York, U.S., May 27, 2020. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

FILE PHOTO: Colleen Curtin, who says she is suffering from health issues that have not been able to be diagnosed by testing due to the current circumstances, sits in her wheelchair for a portrait as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, along a path in Madison, Wisconsin, U.S., April 17, 2020. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo

FILE PHOTO: Flight attendants talk in a nearly empty cabin on a Delta Airlines flight operated by SkyWest Airlines as travel has cutback, amid concerns of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), during a flight departing from Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S. April 11, 2020. REUTERS/Jim Urquhart/File Photo

FILE PHOTO: Members of the West Virginia National Guard’s Task Force Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) Response Enterprise sanitize workspaces to help slow the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) for the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission in Charleston, West Virginia, April 11, 2020. Picture taken April 11, 2020. U.S. Army National Guard/Edwin L. Wriston/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

FILE PHOTO: Lori Spencer visits her mom Judie Shape, 81, who Spencer says has tested positive for coronavirus, at Life Care Center of Kirkland, the Seattle-area nursing home at the epicenter of one of the biggest coronavirus outbreaks in the United States, in Kirkland, Washington, U.S. March 11, 2020. REUTERS/Jason Redmond/File Photo

FILE PHOTO: Pastor Emily Nesdahl leads a virtual Sunday service online broadcast due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions at Peace Lutheran Church, featuring drawings of parishioners taped to the pews, in Burlington, North Dakota, U.S. April 26, 2020. REUTERS/Dan Koeck/File Photo

FILE PHOTO: Workers walk out of Smithfield Foods pork plant as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, U.S., April 16, 2020. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo

FILE PHOTO: People walk along the shore as beaches reopen after closures aimed at preventing the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, U.S., April 21, 2020. REUTERS/Rachel Jessen/File Photo

FILE PHOTO: REACT EMS paramedics wearing protective gear load a potential coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patient for transport in Shawnee, Oklahoma, U.S. April 2, 2020. REUTERS/Nick Oxford/File Photo

The United States surpassed 100,000 deaths from the coronavirus on Wednesday.

Johns Hopkins University listed the total deaths at 100,047 early Wednesday evening. There have been nearly 1.7 million cases in the U.S.

Around the world, there have been 5.65 million cases and more than 353,000 deaths.

The numbers of deaths in the U.S. are slowing down as Walt Disney World makes plans to reopen and crowds of unmasked Americans swarm beaches. Some public health officials predict a resurgence of COVID-19 in the fall.

The stark reality comes as only half of Americans said they would be willing to get vaccinated if scientists are successful in developing a vaccine, according to a new poll released Wednesday from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, issued a stern warning after viewing video showing Memorial Day crowds gathered at a pool party in the U.S. state of Missouri.

"We have a situation in which you see that type of crowding with no mask and people interacting. That's not prudent and that's inviting a situation that could get out of control," he said during an interview Wednesday on CNN. "Don't start leapfrogging some of the recommendations in the guidelines because that’s really tempting fate and asking for trouble."

After months of lockdowns in many countries, places have begun reopening in stages. Mediterranean beaches and Las Vegas casinos laid out plans to welcome tourists again. Churches began opening up. And humans restless at being cooped up indoors for weeks began venturing outside in droves, often without practicing safe social distancing or wearing protective coverings.

On Wednesday, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo traveled to Washington to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump to ask for help with massive New York City transportation projects. Cuomo accused top Republicans of "abusing" states hardest hit by COVID-19 by opposing more aid.

The Democratic governor wants to move quickly on billions of dollars' worth of infrastructure projects to jump-start New York's outbreak-ravaged economy.

Cuomo said he talked to Trump about two train tunnels beneath the Hudson River, an expansion of the Second Avenue subway line and a train linking LaGuardia Airport in Queens to Manhattan.

The projects require some federal funding or approval. Cuomo said he and the Republican president, who are often at odds, will talk again next week.

Cuomo also is seeking more federal aid for states like New York that are struggling with revenue shortfalls because of the pandemic. Some Republicans in control of the Senate have opposed the additional aid, and Cuomo continued his harsh criticism.

Trump later traveled to Florida to watch the launch of the SpaceX rocket ship with two NASA astronauts on a history-making flight into orbit.

However, the flight was called off with fewer than 17 minutes to go in the countdown Wednesday due to thunderclouds and the danger of lightning.

Liftoff was rescheduled for Saturday afternoon.

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