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SANTIAGO, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) -- Chile on Monday reported a total of 411,726 people have tested positive for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) since the onset of the pandemic and 11,289 people have died from the disease.

According to the Ministry of Health, 1,753 new cases of infection were detected in the previous day, and 45 more patients died.

Health authorities said 383,879 people have recovered from the disease while 16,558 confirmed cases are considered still active.

Eight small towns, or communes, within the capital Santiago and the Metropolitan Area on Monday began the process of emerging from lockdown.

Cathy Barriga, mayor of Maipu, a commune in the southwest of the capital that's home to more than half a million residents, told local press: "We want to move forward."

However, "we must promote the safety measures" to reopen without risking public health, she added. Enditem