New York, Apr 8 (IANS): New York state, which has become the coronavirus epicentre of the US, on Tuesday reported its highest single-day spike in its death toll, taking the total to over 5,000, Governor Andrew Cuomo said.

The 731 fresh deaths reported brought the state's total to 5,489 deaths and 138,836 infections, the BBC reported. As many as 3, 485 deaths were reported from New York City as per the Johns Hopkins University's Coronavirus Resource Centre.

New York's death toll is nearly half of the US's 11,851 and cumulative cases well over a third of the nation's 379,965.

The Governor said that New York saw its highest number of fatalities in a 24 hour period between Monday and Tuesday- after two days of slowing infection rates and fewer deaths.

Maintaining that the three day average for cases had fallen, Cuomo, however, warned that New Yorkers to continue following health guidelines to socially distance and stay indoors.

"We need to vigorously maintain it. Lives depend on it," he said.

He asked New Yorkers to avoid large gatherings as religious holidays Passover and Easter come.

Meanwhile, the state administration faced questions over their actions for at-risk people after an infected inmate - waiting a hearing for a non-criminal offence - died at Rikers jail.

As of Monday, 286 inmates and 331 staffers in New York City's jails have tested positive for the coronavirus.