Tag: Omicron

Asia, Europe see spike and a WHO warning: Global Covid-19 surge weekly round-up

Covid-19 surge: Delta and Omicron variants continue to dominate a fresh wave in Asia with China, Hong Kong, Singapore and South Korea witnessing a surge daily cases. Here’s a round-up of the Covid-19 surge across the world in 10 points
A worker wearing protective gear looks on as people wait to be tested for the Covid-19 coronavirus at a residential compound in Shanghai.(AFP)

The pandemic was a long way off, the World Health Organization warned this week, with several nations across the world witnessing a spike in Covid cases yet again. With some South East Asian nations also seeing a surge, India has been prompted to keep the guards up. China is battling with a rise in daily cases driven by the highly infectious ‘stealth Omicron variant’. The country saw its first deaths since January 2021 this week.

Here’s a round-up of the Covid surge across the world in 10 points:

1. Delta and Omicron variants continue to dominate a fresh wave in Asia with China, Hong Kong, Singapore and South Korea witnessing a surge in coronavirus infections.

2. China’s national health authorities reported two Covid-19 deaths, the first recorded rise in death toll since January 2021, as the country battles a surge, reports said. China reported only two Covid deaths for all of 2021, the last of those on Jan 25.

3. Singapore on Saturday reported 10,244 new cases, taking the total tally to 1,007,158, according to news agency ANI. Three deaths were also reported on Saturday, bringing the overall count to 1,194.

Source: https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/global-covid-19-surge-weekly-round-up-asia-europe-see-spike-and-a-who-warning-101647743406688.html?utm_source=whatsapp&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ht_site

A covid surge in Western Europe has U.S. bracing for another wave

A surge in coronavirus infections in Western Europe has experts and health authorities on alert for another wave of the pandemic in the United States, even as most of the country has done away with restrictions after a sharp decline in cases.

Infectious-disease experts are closely watching the subvariant of omicron known as BA.2, which appears to be more transmissible than the original strain, BA.1, and is fueling the outbreak overseas.

What to know about BA.2, a new version of the omicron variant

Germany, a nation of 83 million people, saw more than 250,000 new cases and 249 deaths Friday, when Health Minister Karl Lauterbach called the nation’s situation “critical.” The country is allowing most coronavirus restrictions to end Sunday, despite the increase. Britain had a seven-day average of 65,894 cases and 79 deaths as of Sunday, according to the Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Research Center. The Netherlands, home to fewer than 18 million people, was averaging more than 60,000 cases the same day.

In all, about a dozen nations are seeing spikes in coronavirus infections caused by BA.2, a cousin of the BA.1 form of the virus that tore through the United States over the past three months.

In the past two years, a widespread outbreak like the one now being seen in Europe has been followed by a similar surge in the United States some weeks later. Many, but not all, experts interviewed for this story predicted that is likely to happen. China and Hong Kong, on the other hand, are experiencing rapid and severe outbreaks, but the strict “zero covid” policies they have enforced make them less similar to the United States than Western Europe.

Source: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/a-covid-surge-in-western-europe-has-us-bracing-for-another-wave/ar-AAV8kgb?ocid=sw

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