The whole world is fighting the pandemic as the vaccination campaign goes on like a patch,
GERMANY
- "We see in intensive care that patients are already changing, they are getting younger".
This is what the vice president of the Robert Koch Institut, Laus Schaade, said today at a press conference in Berlin with Health Minister Jens Spahn.
The numbers are not yet as high as perhaps one would have expected, but with the increase in infections they will grow: "At that point we will have much more young patients in intensive care. They are the least protected at the moment".
Schaade warned: "If we think that we can now run the pandemic because older people are vaccinated, we will see a breakthrough in intensive care and death cases with many more young people involved."
France
- One year after the first lockdown, the flight of Parisians to second homes and, in general, to non-red regions, where people can move freely until midnight, is repeated - on the eve of the third closure of the pandemic year between today and tomorrow.
After, for a month, from the three red zones, including Ile-de-France, it will not be possible to move to the rest of France.
Already yesterday evening, after the announcement of the closure of the Ile-de-France by Prime Minister Jean Castex, it was almost impossible to book a train ticket on the website of the SNCF railways in the direction of the French Basque country (west coast) or Brittany , unless you travel first class for exorbitant fares.
The company explained this morning that it had about double the number of bookings (73,000 trips sold) compared to the previous day and almost ten times the number of cancellations.
The most sought after destinations for Parisians are Bordeaux, Lyon, Marseille, Rennes and Nantes.
For Biarritz, there hasn't been a seat on the trains from Paris since last night.
Ticket prices skyrocket, up to over 600 euros
GREAT BRITAIN
- The United Kingdom recorded "an excess of mortality" in 2020 compared to the average of previous years of about 8%, a record in times of peace largely linked to the pandemic;
but at least 6 other European countries had an even worse balance sheet, according to the comparative data available prepared by the Office for National Statistics (Ons), the British equivalent of Istat, and presented today.
The data does not include the deaths of the first months of 2021, including those related to the latest wave of coronavirus infections which in the Kingdom has already had a heavy impact due to the aggressive 'English variant' and is now down again, while in various countries of the continent it is still on the rise.
The countries with the highest increase in mortality are in order Poland, Spain, Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic and Slovenia, according to the ONS, which places the island in seventh place, specifying however that it was able to rely on the data of only 22 States and, for example, that they do not have the complete count relating to Italy.
The Kingdom has so far marked the European peak in absolute numbers - but not in relation to the population - in the number of victims from Covid: with almost 126,000 deaths quantified within 28 days of a diagnosis confirmed with the swab (according to the methodology common to other countries );
and about 146,000 according to the estimates of the same Ons which include all those whose death certificate is also indicated as the most remote contributing cause.
UNITED STATES
- As the US approaches to surpass 30 million coronavirus cases, Johns Hopkins University warns of an alarming increase in cases in some US states.
According to the data released, the infections this week increased in 14 states by more than 10% compared to the previous seven days, and in half the increase recorded was as much as 20%.
The worst acceleration of infections was recorded in Michigan, but Delaware, Montana, Alabama and West Virginia also recorded alarming leaps.
The CDC, meanwhile, reported that more than 73.6 million Americans have received at least one dose of an anti-covid vaccine, and more than 39.9 million are fully vaccinated, or about 12% of the US population. .
PHILIPPINES
- The Philippines recorded 7,103 new cases of coronavirus in the last 24 hours, the highest daily level since the beginning of the pandemic: the Ministry of Health has announced, according to international media reports.
At the same time, an additional 13 deaths from the disease were reported.
The new data bring the overall toll of infections to 648,066, including 12,900 victims.
INDIA
- India has recorded 39,726 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, the highest daily figure since the beginning of the year and about double the peak of last week: the Ministry of Health has announced.
The country thus returns to the levels of infection of last November, while the number of cases continues to rise in the richest Indian state, Maharashtra, of which Mumbai is the capital: in the last 24 hours, 25,833 have been recorded, the highest daily level since beginning of the pandemic (2,877 in Mumbai).
SYRIA
- In Damascus, the capital of Syria, there are no longer beds in intensive care due to the increase in hospitalizations for covids.
This was reported by a senior official of the Syrian ministry of health, Tawfiq Hassab, quoted by the Syrian government agency Sana.
"The occupancy rate of intensive care beds dedicated to coronavirus patients in public hospitals in Damascus has reached 100%," said Hassab, director of the emergency services department of the Syrian ministry.
"A number of patients with Covid-19 who needed intensive care have been transferred to hospitals in other regions," said Hassab, pointing out that there is an increase in infections not only in the capital but also in other areas of the country. country.
In recent days, the Syrian presidency had said that President Bashar al-Assad and his wife were recovering from Covid-19, contracted in early March.
PAPUA NEW GUINEA
- International aid is too slow to avoid a health disaster linked to Covid-19 in Papua New Guinea (Png), which is experiencing a serious epidemic, a Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) official said today.
The number of cases has reached a record high, forcing authorities to close schools, restrict non-essential travel and allow the use of mass graves.
Humanitarian organizations estimate that the delivery by Monday of 8,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine from Australia is insufficient and too late.
"The Png epidemic is rapidly worsening, hospitals and clinics are overwhelmed and many health workers are already infected," said Jennifer Tierney, director of MSF Australia.
POLAND
- The toll of coronavirus cases in Poland has exceeded the 2 million threshold: this is what emerges from the counts of Johns Hopkins University.
According to the American university, since the beginning of the pandemic, 2,010,244 infections have been recorded in the country, including 48,807 deaths.
CHILE
- Coronavirus quarantine territories are increasing in Chile, in the Santiago Metropolitan Region and in other cities of the country, due to the uncontrolled increase in infections that is severely hitting the health system, despite the mass vaccination campaign that has proceeded seen over 5.4 million people immunized with at least one dose.
The country has so far recorded 911,469 infections with 21,988 deaths.
The authorities have decided that another 24 municipalities will return to a phase of isolation starting tomorrow, which will add to 28 areas that were quarantined yesterday.
BRAZIL
- Brazil has recorded 2,724 deaths from Covid-19 and 86,982 infections in the last pre.
This was revealed by the National Council of State Health Secretariats (Conass).
The total toll rises to 287,499 victims compared to 11,780,820 confirmed cases. Meanwhile, the Municipality of Rio de Janeiro published today in the local official gazette a decree that determines the closure of the beaches to contain the advance of Covid in the city.
In the carioca metropolis, where it is still summer, with temperatures over 30 degrees, from this weekend it will be forbidden to stay on the beach, even if only for sporting activities, as well as swimming and even parking on the promenade.
The mayor, Eduardo Paes, said that, in addition to the closure of the beaches, he will "significantly increase the restrictions in the city next week".
"It's time to stay home," Paes added.
"Either we are aware of what we are living and respect lives, or in the next few days we will live in an unmanageable situation. I appeal to the people of Rio, knowing that it is a tough, difficult measure", concluded the mayor, in statements reported by the media.
SWITZERLAND
- Switzerland has postponed plans to relax restrictions to combat Covid-19 due to a growing number of cases and insufficient progress in vaccinations.
This was announced by the Federal Council, according to Swiss TV.
The terraces of the restaurants will remain closed and events with the public will not be allowed contrary to what was previously provided.
The only concession is the increase in the number of participants in indoor family reunions which will increase from five to ten.
The situation will be reviewed on 14 April.
The number of coronavirus cases in Switzerland and neighboring Liechtenstein has increased in recent days, with 1,748 new cases registered yesterday, well above the seven-day average of 1,285 infections.
SENEGAL
- Senegal today passed the symbolic threshold of one thousand victims for Covid-19 just as the country is planning to ease the restrictive measures imposed due to the virus.
Similarly to what happens in many African nations, the contagion rate in Senegal is much lower than that recorded in the West.
However, the country has been facing the second wave of the pandemic since December and the health authorities announced today that the total cases are at 37,541, 1,003 dead.
Senegal reintroduced a night curfew in the capital Dakar and the city of Thies in the west of the country in January, with the aim of containing the spread of the virus.
The rate of new infections appears to be slower after peaking in early February.
A government spokesman told AFP that the curfew will be lifted from midnight today.