The United States recorded 3,049 deaths from COVID-19 Wednesday, the highest daily tally of fatalities yet in the pandemic, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The one-day count exceeds the death toll of the 9/11 terrorist attacks (2,977) and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake (est. 3,000), two of the greatest disasters to strike the United States in modern times. Although a vaccine against the virus is poised for Food and Drug Administration approval, public health experts warn that the worst of the pandemic is yet to come. Hospitals across the country are reaching capacity, and epidemiologists say a surge in cases from Thanksgiving gatherings has barely begun to register in the national case count. President Donald Trump and his administration have repeatedly asserted the country is “rounding the corner” on the pandemic despite worsening conditions.