Watch: Rio's Christ statue lit up with mask on to raise awareness

The event was organised by the "Todos pela Saúde" ("All for Health") campaign, a group of specialists from different areas of healthcare created to fight COVID-19 and its effects on Brazilian society. The initiative aims to highlight the importance of protection from the virus when going outside.

Rio de Janeiro: An image of Jesus Christ wearing a face mask was projected onto Rio de Janeiro's iconic Christ the Redeemer statue on Sunday, to raise awareness of the protective measures to be taken against the new coronavirus.

It was organised by the "Todos pela Saúde" ("All for Health") campaign, a group of specialists from different areas of healthcare created to fight COVID-19 and its effects on Brazilian society.

The initiative aims to highlight the importance of protection from the virus when going outside.

The hashtag #MascaraSalva (#MaskSaves) and the message "Wearing a mask saves" were also projected onto the statue.

The executive producer of the agency in charge of the projection, Walmir dos Santos, said that the aim was "to raise awareness, not only in Brazil since the Christ is a world icon, on the importance of wearing a mask."

More than 7,000 people have died in Brazil due to the virus, with at least 100,000 confirmed cases as of Sunday.