MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia on Tuesday reported 852 deaths from COVID-19 in the past 24 hours, above the previous all-time high recorded last week amid a spike in cases.
Authorities reported 21,559 new cases in the past 24 hours, slightly down from 22,236 on Monday.
Daily cases started climbing in early September after millions of Russian students returned to schools and colleges.
Anna Popova, the head of consumer watchdog Rosportebnadzor, said last week there was also a seasonal factor as COVID-19 infections had spiked alongside other respiratory diseases.
President Vladimir Putin briefly self-isolated this month after dozens of people in his entourage were infected.
Authorities in Moscow said they were tightening controls over mandatory mask-wearing amid fears of a fourth wave of COVID-19.
Almost 40 million Russians have been fully inoculated, but with a population of 146 million, it lags behind most European nations and many developing countries in terms of vaccination rates.
(Reporting by Gleb Stolyarov;Writing by Olzhas Auyezov;Editing by Catherine Evans and Giles Elgood)
