May 26 coronavirus news

By Joshua Berlinger, Brett McKeehan and Zamira Rahim, CNN

Updated 0226 GMT (1026 HKT) May 27, 2020

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10:20 p.m. ET, May 25, 2020

Space X astronauts spent three week in “ultimate quarantine”

NASA astronauts Bob Behnken, left, and Doug Hurley speak to the media after arriving at the Kennedy Space Center on May 20, in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

To further protect the crew of Space X’s first astronaut launch from any potential Covid-19 exposure, the company and NASA set up a three-week “ultimate quarantine” -- and outfitted them “looking like ninjas,” a mission official said Monday.

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Demo-2 mission is a flight test with crew, prior to certification of systems by NASA for operational missions to the International Space Station.

NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley are expected to fly on the Crew Dragon spacecraft, lifting off on a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Wednesday.

“Making sure that the crew is healthy and isn't going to be bringing potential virus or anything up to the crew on station... this is a very serious process that people go through,” Kathy Lueders, manager of NASA's commercial crew program, told reporters during a teleconference.

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Demo-2 mission is a flight test with crew, prior to certification of systems by NASA for operational missions to the International Space Station, the space agency said.

NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley are expected to fly on the Crew Dragon spacecraft, lifting off on a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Wednesday.

“They're like doing the ultimate quarantine... They and all the people that have been interacting with them and working with them are suited and checked and tested and to make sure that Bob and Doug are going up to station safe... They look like ninjas."

9:54 p.m. ET, May 25, 2020

Top UK aide defends lockdown trip: "I don't regret what I did"

From CNN's Nada Bashir

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s top adviser, Dominic Cummings, has defended his actions after receiving widespread criticism for traveling more than 250 miles (402 kilometers) from his London home during the nationwide coronavirus lockdown, telling reporters on Monday that he traveled to Durham to ensure the welfare of his child.

“I thought, and I think today, that the rules, including those regarding small children and extreme circumstances, allowed me to exercise my judgment about the situation I found myself in,” Cummings said during the televised briefing.

“I can understand that some people will argue that I should have stayed at my home in London throughout. I understand these views, I know the intense hardship and sacrifice the entire country has had to go through, however I respectfully disagree.”

Cummings also told reporters that he believes his actions were “reasonable in these circumstances,” detailing the series of events which preceded his decision to leave London.

“I was worried that if both my wife and I were seriously ill, possibly hospitalized, there is nobody in London that we could reasonably ask to look after our child and expose themselves to Covid,” the Prime Minister’s adviser said.

“I don’t regret what I did…I think what I did was actually reasonable in these circumstances.”

Some context: Following an investigation by the Mirror and Guardian newspapers, Cummings was revealed to have traveled to Durham – more than 250 miles from his home in London – during the lockdown, despite his wife having developed symptoms of coronavirus.

While Johnson has offered his support for Cummings, saying on Sunday that he believes his adviser acted “responsibly, legally and with integrity,” Cummings confirmed on Monday that he did not inform the Prime Minister of his decision prior to leaving for Durham.

“I did not ask the Prime Minister about this decision. He was ill himself, and he had huge problems to deal with…I thought that I would speak to him when the situation clarified over coming days,” Cummings said.

“Arguably this was a mistake and I understand that some will say that I should have spoken to the Prime Minister before deciding what to do."

9:50 p.m. ET, May 25, 2020

The White House's travel ban for Brazil starts tomorrow

From CNN's Nikki Carvajal

President Donald Trump has issued a proclamation suspending entry into the US for any individual who has been in Brazil within 14 days immediately preceding their arrival.

The new travel suspension begins May 26 at 11:59 p.m. ET.

It's aimed at limiting the spread of coronavirus coming into the US from Brazil, the country with the second-most cases worldwide, according to Johns Hopkins University.

The proclamation reads in part, "I have determined that it is in the interests of the United States to take action to restrict and suspend the entry into the United States, as immigrants or nonimmigrants, of all aliens who were physically present within the Federative Republic of Brazil during the 14-day period preceding their entry or attempted entry into the United States."

Read more here:

White House announces new travel restrictions on Brazil

9:43 p.m. ET, May 25, 2020

Brazil reports more than 11,000 new coronavirus cases in past 24 hours

From CNN's Shasta Darlington and Taylor Barnes

A member of a municipal sanitization crew sprays disinfectant at a bus terminal on May 25, in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Miguel Schincariol/Getty Images

Brazil recorded 11,687 new coronavirus cases within 24 hours, the country's health ministry said on Monday.

This raises the nationwide total to 374,898 confirmed cases.

The country also recorded 807 new deaths, raising the death toll to 23,473.

The South American nation is now second only to the United States in reported cases.

9:42 p.m. ET, May 25, 2020

Peru reports more than 4,000 new coronavirus cases

From CNN’s Taylor Barnes

Workers stand next to coffins of Covid-19 victims at El Angel cemetery, in Lima on May 21. Ernesto Benavides/AFP/Getty Images

The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Peru rose to at least 123,979 on Monday -- a jump of 4,020 from the previous day, according to the country's health ministry.

The ministry also reported 173 new deaths since the previous day, raising the national death toll to 3,629.

Peru has the second-highest number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Latin America, behind Brazil.