COVID-19 UPDATE: UAE REPORTS HIGHEST DAILY INFECTIONS, “CONSPIRACY THEORIST” DESTROYED HUNDREDS OF VACCINES IN US

Wed 06 January 2021:

The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed more than 1.83 million lives in 191 countries and regions since it originated in China in December 2019.

Over 84.76 million cases have been reported worldwide, with more than 47.70 million recoveries, according to figures compiled by the US’ Johns Hopkins University. The US, India, and Brazil remain the worst-hit countries in terms of cases.

China should allow in WHO Covid investigators ‘without delay’: Australia

The Australian government has called on China to allow the entry of World Health Organization experts investigating how the Covid-19 pandemic started, saying visas should be granted “without delay”.

Australia’s foreign minister, Marise Payne, issued a cautious statement after months of rocky relations between the two countries. It follows news today that Chinese authorities have blocked the arrival of a WHO team investigating the early cases of Covid-19 in Wuhan. China argued the team’s visas had not yet been approved, even as some members of the group were on their way.

Second wave in S.Africa sees younger people admitted into ICU

Doctor David Thomson, critical care specialist at Groote Schuur, said the second wave of the pandemic was definitely worse compared to the first wave, EWN reported

“In terms of the types of patients making their way into ICU, it has become much younger patients compared to the first wave.”

Thomson stressed the importance of support for healthcare workers to try and buffer the impact of the pandemic on them.

“We need to prepare ourselves. This is going to be around for a while longer while the vaccine gets rolled out and we need to be smart about it because if we don’t take care of our health system, it will collapse.”

Thousands to get tested as Australia-India match named possible covid-19 hotspot

Thousands of cricket fans who attended Australia’s showpiece Boxing Day Test against India have been told to get tested and isolate Wednesday after a spectator at the match tested positive for COVID-19.

Health authorities said the man in his thirties was not infectious while at the famed Melbourne Cricket Ground on the second day of play “but there is potential he acquired the virus while there” or at a nearby shopping centre.

“The MCG is being investigated as a potential source for the infection,” Victoria’s Department of Health said.

South Korea rolls out mass testing for 70,000 prisoners and staff

South Korea rolled out mass testing for 52 prisons in the country after a massive prison outbreak and may extend flight suspensions from Britain in a bid to prevent the spread of coronavirus cases, the health minister said on Wednesday.

Over half of the total 2,292 inmates and personnel in a prison in southeastern Seoul were tested positive after a first cluster infection was reported within the prison last month, Yoon Tae-ho, a senior health ministry official, told a briefing.

Tokyo sees record new coronavirus cases

Tokyo’s new daily coronavirus cases topped 1,500 on Wednesday to a fresh record, local media reported, as Japan braces for a renewed state of emergency for the Greater metropolitan area.

The previous record for the capital was 1,337, set on 31 December.

US Pharmacist Who Destroyed Vaccines Was “Conspiracy Theorist”

An American pharmacist who allegedly destroyed hundreds of coronavirus vaccine doses last month was an “admitted conspiracy theorist” and believed in a baseless rumor about their safety, authorities have said.

Steven Brandenburg removed 57 vials of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine, each containing around 10 doses, from refrigerators at the Aurora Medical Center in Grafton, Wisconsin, in an attempt to destroy them because he believed — wrongly — that they were dangerous and could alter human DNA.

The 46-year-old also admitted on one occasion to putting the unrefrigerated vaccines back inside, which were later injected into 57 people, the hospital’s operator said.

He was fired and the hospital informed the authorities, including the FBI. He was arrested on Thursday last week.

Turkey: 3 inactive vaccines ready for human testing

Turkey’s health minister announced early Wednesday that three inactive COVID-19 vaccine candidates are ready for human trials.

Fahrettin Koca said 17 different COVID-19 vaccine candidates are currently being developed in Turkey, and among them, “three of our candidate vaccines have applied to the Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency for starting testing on humans.”

“Our inactive vaccine that is in human experiment phase is about to start Phase 2. It is expected to start Phase 3 in April,” he said.

Koca added that a Virus-Like Particle (VLP) vaccine, which is unique in the world, has reached the level for production for research and application for testing on humans soon.

UAE reports 1,967 coronavirus cases, highest daily infections

The UAE reported 1,967 coronavirus cases on Tuesday, the highest daily rise since the start of the pandemic.

The Ministry of Health also reported 1,866 new recoveries and three deaths over the past 24 hours. The country’s COVID-19 tally stood at 216,699 confirmed cases, 193,321 recovered, and 685 deaths.

South Africans banned from visiting Denmark over new strain

Residents of South Africa are to be banned from entering Denmark over fears of the spread of a new strain of coronavirus identified by South African authorities in the middle of last month.

The South African strain and another that has emerged in Britain are said to be more infectious versions of the virus, and have prompted widespread concern. There are also fears – so far unproven – that the South African strain may not be countered by vaccines developed so far to give immunity to Covid-19.

UK: Big increase in the number of vaccines delivery

There will be a “big increase” in the number of coronavirus vaccines delivered in the UK from next week, Nadhim Zahawi, the vaccine minister, has said.

Zahawi told BBC Breakfast “the NHS has a very clear plan and I’m confident that we can meet it”, as he claimed a “significant increase” in the number of vaccinations carried out from the 1.3m he said had been administered from 8 December.

Earlier, Zahawi claimed that 99% of coronavirus deaths could be avoided by vaccinating people in the nine priority categories listed by the Joint Committee for Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).

China restricts travel for 11 mln people in northern city

A northern Chinese city of 11 million people and schools closed as authorities Wednesday moved to snuff out a cluster of Covid-19 after dozens were infected.

Ten major highways leading into the city of Shijiazhuang, around 300 kilometers (200 miles) south of Beijing, have been closed and a bus terminus was closed in an attempt to prevent the virus spreading beyond the city in Hebei province.

There have been 117 cases in the city – including at least 63 more reported Wednesday – 78 of which were asymptomatic, prompting mass testing across the affected area.

State broadcaster CCTV showed teams of health workers spraying disinfectant across streets and said an emergency team of medical workers had been sent to the city.

More than 400,000 residents of another nearby city, Nangong, have also been tested, authorities said.

Beijing is also racing to vaccinate millions ahead of the country’s Lunar New Year travel rush next month.

FOLLOW INDEPENDENT PRESS:

TWITTER (CLICK HERE)
https://twitter.com/IpIndependent