People queue to get their body temperature checked before entering a reopened shopping mall in Brasilia, Brazil, May 27, 2020. (Photo: Xinhua)

RIO DE JANEIRO, May 28 (Xinhua) -- Brazil registered 26,417 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours, the highest single-day surge so far, raising the tally to 438,238, authorities said Thursday.

A total of 1,156 infected patients died in the past 24 hours, taking the death toll to 26,754, according to the country's health ministry.

Brazil has seen daily coronavirus deaths of over 1,000 for three consecutive days, it added.

Since the pandemic hit the country, 177,604 patients have recovered.

Sao Paulo, the epicenter of the virus in Brazil and the country's most populous state, has registered 6,980 deaths and 95,865 cases, followed by Rio de Janeiro, with 4,856 deaths and 44,886 cases.