mollyfamwatThis is what you need to know:.
British travellers are no longer allowed to travel to Turkey from Friday. The Turkish health minister announced that a new variant of the coronavirus has been discovered in the country. linked to credit Bradley Secker for the New York Times.
Turkey closed the door for British travellers on Friday and said it had found 15 infections with a new, more transmissible variant of the virus that first appeared in England. They were all newcomers from the UK.
The Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koça has made a statement in which he states that 15 people infected with the variant are in isolation and their contacts are being monitored and quarantined. The report indicates that the virus has not been detected in anyone except travellers arriving from the UK.
As a result, since the launch of the 8. In December it was announced that the number of countries that have discovered this option is no less than 33 and that the number of countries banning UK travellers is more than 40. Some countries also impose restrictions on travelers, including U.S. citizens who have visited countries where the variant has been discovered in recent weeks.
The Philippines extended the travel restrictions of the United Kingdom and 18 other countries and added the United States after a third state, Florida, reported an infection related to this option. Many countries have already restricted travel from the United States due to the staggering number of infections – the most common in the world.
Cases related to this variant have also been found in California and Colorado. None of the infected people in the US have travelled recently, so the new tribe is clearly circulating, albeit at an unknown level.
The variant known as B.1.1.7 is not known to cause more serious cases of Covida-19, but its spread probably means more infections and more hospital admissions at a time when many countries are already facing a flood of infections and even more are waiting for holiday trips and meetings.
The list of countries that have identified infections with this variant is growing rapidly and includes from Friday onwards, in addition to the United States, Great Britain and Turkey, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Denmark, Germany, South Korea, Spain and the United Arab Emirates, Finland, France, Iceland, India, Ireland and Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Lebanon, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Portugal, Singapore, Sweden and Switzerland, as well as Taiwan, an autonomous democracy claimed by Beijing as part of the One China.
A similar version of the virus has appeared in South Africa, sharing one of the mutations of B.1.1.7, according to the scientists who discovered it. This variant, known as 501.V2, has been detected in up to 90% of the samples whose genetic sequences have been analysed in South Africa since mid-November.
The UK authorities stated that they had discovered two cases of the identified variant in South Africa. In both cases, the infected people have had contact with people who have travelled from South Africa to the United Kingdom in recent weeks. Switzerland, Finland, Australia, Zambia and France have also found this option.
And the 24th. In December, the director of the African Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, John Nkengasong, announced the discovery of another variant, this time in Nigeria, called B.1,207.
Two cases of the new variant of the coronavirus were discovered this week in Colorado, and two others in California and Florida. Upstairs: People in Denver are connected with Daniel Brenner for The New York Times.
A more contagious form of coronavirus in the United States.
This variant was first identified in the United Kingdom and is already responsible for more than 60% of new cases of the coronavirus in London and the surrounding area. It is feared that this variant could exacerbate cases in the United States and put even more pressure on an already strained health care system.
An option that spreads more easily also means that people need to adhere religiously to precautions such as social distance, wearing masks, hand hygiene and better ventilation – bad news for many Americans who are already shocked by the restrictions.
We asked experts to comment on the research development of this new version of the coronavirus. That’s what they should have said.
The new version seems to spread more easily between people.
The new variant, known as B.1.1.7, seems to infect more people than previous versions of the coronavirus, even though the environment is the same.
Initially, scientists estimated that the new variant was 70% transferable, but a recent modelling study estimated this figure at 56%. Once the researchers have gone through all the data, it is possible that the variant may prove 10 to 20 percent more transferable, says Trevor Bedford, an evolutionary biologist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Centre in Seattle.
However, according to Dr Bedford, it should catch up quickly and become the dominant form in the United States in March.
The version behaves just like the previous versions.
So far, this option does not seem to make people sicker or cause more deaths. Still, there is cause for concern: A more transmissible variant will increase the number of deaths, simply because it spreads faster and infects more people.
The modes of transmission – large and small droplets and small aerosol particles floating in crowded areas – have not changed.
Infection with a new variant can increase the amount of virus in the body.
Some preliminary findings from the UK suggest that people infected with the new variant tend to carry more virus in their nose and throat than people infected with previous versions.
This explains why the new version is easier to distribute: The more viral infections lurk in people’s nose and throat, the more they spread through the air and on surfaces when they breathe, talk, sing, cough or sneeze.
In previous versions of the virus, contact tracing has shown that about 10% of people who have had close contact with an infected person – within 1.80 m for at least 15 minutes – have inhaled enough of the virus to become infected.
Under this option, we can hope for 15%, Dr. Bedford said. Today, risky activities are becoming increasingly risky.
Scientists are still investigating how mutations have changed the virus.
Each infected individual has the ability to mutate while the virus reproduces. With more than 83 million infected people worldwide, the coronavirus is collecting mutations faster than scientists predicted at the beginning of the pandemic.
The vast majority of mutations do not benefit the virus and die. However, mutations that improve the ability or transmissibility of the virus are more likely to infect.
At least one of the 17 new mutations in the variant contributes to the higher infectivity. The mechanism is not yet known. There are indications that the new variant can bind more strongly to the protein on the surface of human cells, making them easier to infect.
Muge Sewick, an expert on infectious diseases at the University of St Andrews in Scotland and scientific adviser to the British Government, said it was important to consider the evidence as preliminary and cumulative.
But one thing’s for sure: Mitigation efforts should remain a priority.
We need to pay much more attention to everything and examine the gaps in our protection, Dr. Sewick said.
It is far from certain that vaccines are also interchangeable, several researchers warn. linked to credit Andrew Testa for the New York Times….
As a result of a shortage of vaccines, a flood of cases and fears of a new highly transmissible variant of the coronavirus, Britain has tacitly updated its immunisation file to allow combined vaccination. If the second dose of the vaccine originally received is not available, or if the manufacturer of the first dose is unknown, a different vaccine may be used depending on the health officers.
But far from certain, vaccines are so interchangeable that some researchers have warned.
There’s no data on this idea, said John Moore, a vaccine expert at Cornell University. British officials now seem to have completely abandoned science and are just trying to get out of this mess.
In another controversial decision this week, the British government also decided to boost the vaccine by giving as many first doses to people as possible – a decision that could postpone the second vaccination by 12 weeks.
The UK, where tens of thousands of new infections occur every day, has granted emergency approvals for two vaccines, one developed by Pfizer and BioNTech and the other by Oxford University and AstraZeneca. According to the new manual, every effort should be made to complete the dosage schedule with the same injection as the one used the first time. However, if the same vaccine is not available or if the first dose received is not known, it is reasonable to offer a second dose of the current vaccine.
This option is preferred if the person is likely to pose an immediate high risk or is unlikely to reappear according to the guidelines. Since both vaccines target the coronavirus peak protein, it is likely that the second dose will help to improve the response to the first dose.
The new policy contravenes US guidelines, where the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have found that Covid 19 licensed vaccines are not interchangeable and that the safety and efficacy of a number of blended products have not been evaluated. Both boxes in the series must be filled with the same product.
Some experts say Britain is taking a gamble with its new direction. None of this is currently based on data, says Dr. Phyllis Thien, a doctor specializing in infectious diseases at the University of California, San Francisco. We’re in the Wild West, so to speak.
Dr. Anthony Fauci has agreed to Britain’s plan to become the world’s greatest power within 12 years. week to administer a second dose of the vaccine. linked to polar pictures of Patrick Semanski.
Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the country’s leading infectious disease specialist, told CNN Friday that the United States will not follow the British example by prematurely administering the first vaccine, which could lead to a delay in the administration of the second dose.
Britain announced this week a plan to postpone the recall of two licensed vaccines developed by Pfizer and AstraZeneca to extend the partial protection provided by a single dose to more people.
I wouldn’t be there for it, Dr. Fauci told CNN’s Elizabeth Cohen. We keep doing what we’re doing.
His opinion was endorsed by a number of experts, including Dr. Eric Topol, an expert in clinical research at the Scripps Research Institute in California, who sent a tweet: This is a good thing because it follows what we know, investigates data with an extraordinary efficiency of 95% and avoids extrapolation and ambiguity.
While clinical trials have tested the effectiveness of a second dose administered three to four weeks after the first, the UK authorities allow a delay of up to 12 weeks. These delays were not thoroughly verified during the tests. For example, the Covid-19 vaccine from Pfizer-BioNTech has shown an efficacy of 95% when administered in two doses three weeks in a row.
Stopping this therapy is like taking a trip to the Wild West, says Dr. Phyllis Thien, a doctor specializing in infectious diseases at the University of California, San Francisco. They have to manage the data if they want to change anything.
Increasing the interval between vaccine doses may negate the benefits of the second vaccination, which is designed to strengthen the body’s defence against the coronavirus and increase the strength and durability of the immune response. In the meantime, the protective effect of the first shot may also fade faster than expected.
We don’t know what happens if you only take one dose a month, says Natalie Dean, a biostatistician at the University of Florida. It just hasn’t been tested that way.
GENERAL ADMINISTRATION
Asakusa district in Tokyo on Thursday. As the number of local virus cases increases, the Japanese government plans to declare a state of emergency. in connection with Noriko Hayashi’s credit to the New York Times.
After days of record coronavirus levels in Tokyo, on Saturday the city governor called on Japan’s central government to declare a national state of emergency for the first time since April.
Governor Yuriko Koike of Tokyo met with Japanese Minister of Economic Affairs Yasutoshi Nishimura on Saturday afternoon and asked the government to do so as part of a wider effort to encourage residents to stay in their homes as much as possible.
The request came when Tokyo reported that his medical system was under pressure. The governors of Saitama, Chiba and Kanagawa, a suburb of Tokyo, have joined the Tokyo request.
Mr Nishimura said that the government had not yet consulted experts before making a statement, but acknowledged that the rapid increase in the number of infections had led to a disastrous situation.
If a state of emergency is declared, it will not be formal and will depend primarily on companies and residents voluntarily complying with the state of emergency.
A total of 238,012 cases of covid-19 and 3,514 deaths have been reported in Japan. A record number of 1,337 new infections was reported in Tokyo on Thursday, with an average of almost 3,000 infections per day reported last week.
Japan has also discovered cases of a more transmissible variant of the virus that first appeared in England, and closed its borders to new foreign travellers at the end of last month.
Public health experts have expressed concern that 100,000 new cases have been reported in Japan in less than six weeks, while it took almost eight months to reach the first 100,000 cases. The number of deaths is also increasing rapidly, with a total doubling in the last two months.
If we do nothing but continue with economic and social activities, we can have rapid growth, Shigeru Omi, chairman of the government’s panel of experts on coronaviruses, told reporters last week.
He said residents are increasingly avoiding activities or narrow places where the virus can easily spread, and clusters have been found in workplaces, restaurants, strangers and the elderly.
Other events in the world:
- The death toll of the pandemic in Brazil – the second largest country in the world – approached 200,000 people on Saturday. In the United States alone, the death toll is higher, almost 350,000. There are about 7.6 million cases in Brazil, and Minas Gerais leads all Brazilian states in the number of new cases, with an average of nearly 4,000 per day in the past week.
- South Korea said on Saturday that it will continue to impose restrictions in and around Seoul until the 17th. The month of January was expanded to include schools, gymnasiums, karaoke halls, bars and other high-risk institutions. These restrictions represent the second highest level of the five-tier system in a country whose response to the pandemic was once exemplary. On Saturday, the government said it would extend one of the restrictions – a ban on meetings of more than four people – from Seoul to the whole country.
- In the northern Chinese city of Shenyang, which reported seven cases on Friday, the authorities tightened restrictions on Saturday by closing public places, preventing some residents from leaving their home areas and ordering secondary workers in some areas to stay at home, the state news agency Xinhua reported. The authorities in Beijing, about 400 miles southwest of Shenyang, also said they had managed to contain the small outbreak, but warned that it could still spread beyond the area where it began.
Alvin Kamara (41) enters the end zone between Anthony Harris (41) and Eric Wilson (50) of the Minnesota Vikings in last weekend’s match. Chuck Cook/USA Today Sports, via Reuters.
Alvin Kamara, the star of the New Orleans Saints and one of the best players in the N.F.L. this season, has been placed on the N.F.L. reserve list, which means he will not be in the regular season finals on Sunday and his chances of making the team’s first playoff game could be compromised.
The competition did not indicate whether Kamara tested positive or whether he came into contact with someone who tested positive. But a person familiar with the test protocol of the competition said that Camara tested positive, which means that he must be isolated for at least 10 days and can return if he is not symptomatic at the end of that period.
Playoffs begin next weekend, and Kamara’s availability will depend on when he gives a sample that tests positive – information that has not been made public.
However, the Saints (11-4) have the opportunity to rest until the second weekend of the play-offs. Then Kamara comes back when he no longer shows symptoms of covidemia. To get that break, they’d have to be the first seed of their conference.
The Saints have already won their division, the N.F.C. South, but are fighting with the Green Bay Packers (12-3) and the Seattle Seahawks (11-4) for first place. Under the new play-off format introduced this season, only the team that finished in first place will advance to the first round of the play-offs.
To get a pass, the Saints have to win their match on Sunday in Charlotte, N.C., against the Carolina Panthers (5-10), despite the absence of Kamara. The Packers also have to lose to the Chicago Bears (8-7) and the Seahawks to defeat the San Francisco 49ers.
Camara, 25, had the best game of his career in four years when he ran for six touchdowns on Christmas Day, equal to the league record set by Ernie Nevers of the Chicago Cardinals in 1929 at the age of 91.
Kamara has thrown in a 932-yard, 16 touchdown runs this season, a career record. He also took 83 passes for 756 yards and five touchdowns.
A statement released Friday confirmed that Virginia State Senator Ben Chafin… Credit… Steve Helber/Associated Press died.
Virginia Senator Ben Chafin, who died of Covid 19’s disease, confirmed the Senate’s Republican Caucasus on Friday night.
Chafin, aged 60, was first elected to the Senate of Virginia in 2014. Before he became a senator, he was a member of Virginia’s House of Representatives.
Ben was deeply and sincerely committed to the Commonwealth and especially to the people of Southwest Virginia, said Thomas C. Norment Jr., president of the state’s Republican Senate. As the leader of the Russell community, Ben stood up in the ranks of law, banking and agriculture long before his neighbours elected him to the General Assembly.
Government. Ralph Northam expressed his condolences to Mr Chafin’s family and said in a statement that he will always be grateful for his courageous voice in extending healthcare to people in need. In 2018, Chafin joined three other Republican senators in the state to vote for the extension of Medicaid to Virginia, according to the Richmond-Times Dispatch.
It is sad news to start the new year with the loss of a good and kind man, Mr. Northam said. May we all promise to take extra steps to take care of each other.
Although President Trump was not present, a New Year’s party was held in Mar-a-Lago on Friday. Guests did not wear masks and violated the restrictions Saul Martinez had set in the interior of the New York Times.
A New Year’s Eve party was held at President Trump’s private social club in Palm Beach, Florida, where people without masks dined indoors and danced to performances by Vanilla Ice and members of the Beach Boys.
Mr. Trump and the first lady, Melania Trump, unexpectedly returned to the White House a few hours before the party he originally intended to attend. It wasn’t clear why Mr. Trump returned to Washington, D.C., where he hasn’t appeared in public since his return.
But members of the president’s family and his extended political circle still came to the party, with warnings to meet indoors as the coronavirus reached its deadliest levels during the holiday. The gala also appears to have violated certain policies posted on the Palm Beach County website that require facial coverage for all companies and government agencies. According to the Palm Beach Post, more than 500 guests were expected.
Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr. and his girlfriend, former Fox News host Kimberly Guilfoyle, were present. Rudolph Giuliani, personal attorney to the president and former mayor of New York City, was featured in a line dance shoot with a female partner during a performance in New York City, New York.
A photo uploaded by Eric Trump showed at least 15 partygoers and a server in the background. Only the waiter wore a mask.
Tickets for the event would have cost $1,000.
As the new year approaches on Thursday evening, Mr Trump continues to make false statements about voter fraud. Less than 15 minutes before midnight, as millions of Americans prepare for a toast to the arrival of 2021, Mr. Two clips from the right-wing news network One America News Network, which promoted conspiracy theories about the election.
On Friday, Mr. Trump also filed a complaint after Congress voted for the first time to override one of his vetoes, supporting the passage of a wide-ranging law on military spending. The president complained that Congress did not approve the larger stimulus package he had requested.
Now they want to give $600 to those affected by the Chinese virus instead of the $2,000 they desperately need, he writes. Dishonest, or clever!
People are lining up to receive the coronavirus vaccine at Fort Myers, Florida on Tuesday. Officials are trying to explain the delays in the national vaccine rollout related to the Octavio Jones credit for the New York Times.
The United States begins the New Year with a long delay in rolling out the coronavirus vaccine, spreading it to only a fraction of the 20 million people it hoped to reach by then, despite having reached a grim new milestone on New Year’s Eve: 20 million cases since the start of the pandemic.
In a statement posted on his website on Friday, Utah Senator Mitt Romney said that, as unclear as it may be, no comprehensive federal immunization plan has been developed and sent to the states as a model.
This statement is the Republican Sen’s strongest criticism of the Trump administration’s management of the vaccine.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 2.8 million people have received their first dose, although this number may be somewhat low due to delayed reporting. Federal officials say they don’t fully understand the reason for the delays and blame them. Operation Warp Speed officials – the federal effort to accelerate immunization – said their job is to ensure that vaccines are available and delivered to the states. Then the states are supposed to pick up the torch.
Romney said it was unrealistic for already overstretched caregivers to take responsibility for immunizing the nation, and criticized plans to use CFS and Walgreens for mass vaccinations.
They don’t have the manpower to vaccinate millions of Americans, Romney said. They are also unable to cope with the rare but serious reactions that can occur.
Mr. Romney suggested several vague ideas, such as. B. the training of any health professional, whether retired or active, who is not otherwise engaged in vaccine administration and the establishment of a schedule according to the patient’s priority category and date of birth.
I have experience in organizing a major logistics event, but nothing of the magnitude of what we call today, Romney added. I don’t have any medical or social experience either. But I know that when something doesn’t work, you have to recognise reality and make a plan – especially when hundreds of thousands of lives are at stake.
Health experts and hospital officials from across the country cited a number of factors that contributed to the shortfall in vaccinations.
The people were unemployed and the clinics had made fewer hours during the holidays. States require doses for their nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, an effort that is only now intensifying and is expected to last several months. At national level, only 8% of the doses distributed for use in these facilities have been administered, and two million have not yet been distributed.
The operation was characterised not only by delays, but also by confusion, oblivion and worse.
In one case, 42 people in West Virginia who should have received a coronavirus vaccine were wrongly injected with a monoclonal antibody during an experimental treatment.
In another case, a pharmacist in a Wisconsin hospital was arrested for allegedly removing hundreds of doses of vaccine from a cold store and deliberately contaminating it. No reason has yet been given, but officials said the pharmacist knew his action would mean that people receiving destroyed boxes would think they were protected if they were not.
The United States is not alone in trying to spread vaccines. French President Emmanuel Macron is increasingly criticised for France’s slow deployment. Less than 200 people have received a dose since Sunday, when the European Union officially launched its campaign to distribute the vaccines to its 410 million citizens. In the same period almost 80,000 people were resettled in Germany.
On the contrary: The pace of the Israeli vaccination programme is much faster than that of other countries in the world. Nearly 10 percent of Israel’s population has been affected since the beginning of the 20th century programme. December received the first of two doses of Pfizer/BioNTech’s vaccine.
Robbie Vargas-Cortez (left) had a surprise in store when Eric Wanderley injected him with the vaccine. linked to Sanford Health Care Credit.
When Eric Vanderly, a licensed nurse from Canton, Santa Barbara, started administering the Covid 19 vaccine to his friend, Robbie Vargas-Cortez, the director of the Medical Investigator’s Office, a pleasant surprise awaited him in Robbie’s left sleeve – an engagement ring.
Mr Vargas-Cortez, who pinned an engagement ring on the top of his left hand, gave Mr Vanderly a moving yes on 23 December, before administering the Covid 19 vaccine to his fiancée.
The proposal, which was recorded on video and received more than 4,000 messages on Facebook, was greeted by a choir of Mr Vanderlee’s colleagues, who seemed equally surprised.
It’s been a crazy year, and you know I’ve had a lot of fun having you in my life, Mr. Vargas-Cortez, 31, as he suggested.
Wanderley, 26 years old, said in an interview that the offer put him on the wrong track.
The couple, who have been living together for almost five years, said they often made jokes about their engagement, but in the middle of the pandemic it became difficult to think about planning a surprise. But then Mr. Vanderly asked for help with the vaccinations, and Mr. Vargas-Cortez said he understood: What could be better?
Their engagement was a bright spot in a pretty dark year. Last November, Mr. Vanderly’s grandfather died of complications related to Covid-19, one of 347,000 Covid-19-related deaths in the United States since the start of the pandemic, according to the New York Times database.
He was the healthiest man, Mr. Vanderlee said. He wasn’t in trouble, and suddenly he was gone.
The couple said they were humiliated by the amount of love and support they received online after their engagement.
It just brought a new wave of joy, Vanderlee said.
The New York Sheriff’s Department held a secret New Year’s Eve party in SoHo on Thursday. Current state restrictions prohibit the meeting of more than 10 people indoors. in connection with the New York Sheriff’s Department credit bureau.
After avoiding so many mistakes during the year, the New Yorkers were treated to an evening that will undoubtedly be remembered for the general rejection of the usual brass band. But some couldn’t resist the call of the big night.
Sheriff’s deputies overseeing large indoor meetings raided three city buildings, including the 300-client Queens Karaoke Club. It was as if all eyes hadn’t sounded at Times Square, the center of the party for over a century, and the Thursday night was practically deserted.
The attempt to celebrate came amid new infections: 176 deaths on Friday, according to the New York Times database. Nearly one in ten people in the city has tested positive in the past week. Nationally, the average positive result over the last seven days was 7.2%.
But on New Year’s Eve there didn’t seem to be many big parties like this that were easier to find.
Delegates from the New York Sheriff’s Department checking an emergency exit from a building in Maspeth, Queens, saw a worker see a steady stream of people entering the karaoke club Friday morning to sing.
Three floors of people with these small rooms, Sheriff Joseph Fucito said Friday. And every one of those rooms was full of people.
The members discovered an illegal club on the sixth floor of Prince Street in Soho where alcohol and champagne were served to about 145 dancing patrons. And at Sunset Park in Brooklyn, they interrupted a party at Star Hall where about 80 people drank and smoked bongs, the sheriff said.
But it was the low-key celebration in Times Square that largely determined the mood in the city.
Jennifer Lopez performed in front of an intimate audience; only a few dozen primary health care workers were invited. Mayor Bill de Blasio was nearby. His drag dance in New York, New York with his wife, Chirlane McCray, was recorded and uploaded to social media, where it was greeted with the outrage that greets most of his daily interactions.
Some of the approximately 2,500 guerrillas dance at a New Year’s party in an abandoned hangar near Rennes, France. The party was still on Friday morning. Jean-François Monnier/ Agence France-Presse – Getty Images, proof of creditworthiness
Faced with the resurgence of infection at Covida 19, the French authorities have made every effort to ensure that France will be safe by 2021. On New Year’s Eve a national curfew was set by some 130,000 police officers; all public celebrations were banned and the government advised to limit the number of private meetings to six people.
This did not prevent about 2500 partygoers from attending an illegal New Year’s Eve party near the city of Rennes in northwestern France.
According to a statement from the local authorities, there were still many people on the premises of the illegal party on Friday morning and the police could not arrest them. Ambulance personnel were deployed around the facility to distribute gel and masks to reduce the risk of exposure to the coronavirus, and prosecutors announced an investigation into the illegal organization of the event.
The policemen tried to prevent the rave, but were confronted with fierce hostility from many of the revelers, according to the statement, adding that they were bombed with stones and bottles and that a police car was set on fire.
The wave near Rennes and several other large-scale illegal festivals spread by the police in France have raised concerns about the spread of the coronavirus, as the country is still suffering from the second wave of the pandemic.
With more than 2.6 million confirmed cases of the coronavirus, the highest number in Europe, and around 65,000 deaths, France has paid a heavy price for the pandemic.
Health authorities announced on Thursday that the first case of a new variant of the coronavirus related to South Africa had been reported in France, as the daily average number of new infections exceeded 13,000 in seven days, more than double the government’s daily target of 5,000 new infections to ease restrictions.
In order to counter the increase in the number of infections in some parts of the country, the French government announced on Friday a two-hour curfew in 15 of the 101 French departments or administrative divisions. The curfew is from 18.00 hours Saturday, not from 20.00 hours.
With hospitals still struggling with the second wave of the pandemic and the authorities fear that the festive season could lead to a resurgence of Covida 19 infection, the French Government is under pressure to act.
In a note submitted to the government on the 23rd. The French Scientific Council, the government’s advisory body on the Covida 19 crisis, has recommended rapid action in view of a possible resurgence of a pandemic that could soon get out of hand.
The French government has so far ruled out a return to full closure, despite pressure from some local authorities, but Olivier Veran, the French health minister, has warned that any relaxation of the restrictions that have forced bars, restaurants, museums and theatres to close could be postponed.
At this stage, and depending on developments in the coming days, it seems unlikely that all restrictions will be lifted, Mr Veran said.
On Thursday the confetti rained on Times Square for an almost deserted New Year’s party. In recent years, the festival has attracted over a million guests. linked to the Johnny Milano credit for the New York Times.
In the wake of a pandemic that devastated life and the economy, many Americans shunned the usual New Year celebrations and instead concentrated on how they spent much of 2020 – away from their loved ones, in a virtual environment, or alone.
Forget the old-fashioned parties, fixed-price dinners, open bars and streets full of festivities: Times Square was empty, a gloomy picture of what has changed since the last ball fell.
As 2021 approached, ten votes – not hundreds of thousands – counted the last ten seconds of the year. It was always raining confetti, but the coloured traces were usually on the pavement, not on people’s shoulders. Instead of the constant roar of cheering and shouting, there were occasional cries of joy amidst the roar of the fireworks.
But none of this tempered the palpable excitement of those present.
Alexis Hurley of Hell’s Kitchen was emotionally disturbed on a nearby street as midnight approached. This has been the worst year of my life and the lives of many of my friends, Hurley said. It’s just relief and hope it gets better.
In another Manhattan, in Manhattan Beach, California. – Kara Maeda and her two roommates were happy to spend a quiet evening at home drinking White Claw and eating sushi. They said their priorities have changed over the past year.
This year, Maeda said, we really slowed down and thought about what was really important.
And in Denver, Alison Steen, a writer and journalist who left Ohio in August, helped organize an appeal to Zoom to commemorate the 10th birthday of their son Henry.
It was very difficult to move during the pandemic, especially he had to make friends, Stine said. It’s very difficult to meet new people on the computer.
Mrs. Stina, 42, said her son wore a funny hat and played a video game with his friends. They plan to ignite the sparks later. That’s what we have now, she says, these little moments.
She was different in other ways too. The airports were about three-quarters less crowded than on New Year’s Eve last year, and the Transportation Security Authority had less than a million people passing through its checkpoints for the first time since Christmas.
On New Year’s Eve, usually thousands of people come to Las Vegas. The casinos and restaurants were reopened this year with limited capacity, but some of the fireworks were cancelled. Tickets for the downtown event – a light show and a zip line – planned for about 14,000 people were cancelled this week after consultation with health officials. Only those who stayed in nearby hotels were allowed inside.
Chicago’s transit agencies are known to offer free rides on New Year’s Eve – but not this year, where restaurants and bars were closed until 11pm. Despite the cold a party decided to go out on a drive-in with masks and social detachment.
Among those vaccinated in New York City are still hospital employees, people in nursing homes and some essential frontline workers such as firefighters. credit Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images.
In New York City, the winter wave of the coronavirus continues: In the past week there have been an average of 4,000 cases and about 40 deaths per day. Nevertheless, the rollout of the vaccine, which was supposed to restore the semblance of normality, slowly got underway.
More than 340,000 doses of vaccine have been delivered to the city, but so far their distribution does not look like the mass mobilisation many had dreamed of. And public health experts say the pace of immunization in New York City is urgent, given the possibility that authorities may soon discover a more contagious variant of the virus, first identified in Britain and now known to be present in three American states and dozens of countries around the world.
In the first 17 days after the start of vaccination, about 88,140 people in the city’s five municipalities received the first of two doses, representing only about 1% of the city’s population. Until now, mainly hospital staff, residents and employees of old people’s homes and some employees of clinics have been vaccinated. The city hasn’t opened any large vaccination sites yet.
Mayor Bill de Blasio said Thursday that the city still plans to introduce the cans to a million people by the end of January. He suggested that the state acted as a bottleneck by not allowing the city to open immunization to larger populations.
If they give us permission, we can act very quickly, the Blasio said. We need government leadership on categories of people, and the more it expands, the faster we can act.
Ronald Scott Braithwaite, professor at New York University School of Medicine. Grossman Medical School, which models the epidemic in New York City and serves as an advisor to the city, said his team’s analysis shows that once 10 to 20 percent of the city is vaccinated, new cases begin to decline – as long as social distance and the use of the mask remain in place and the new strain doesn’t spread to New York City. But this goal is far from being achieved.
If the new variant replaces the existing one and we don’t vaccinate soon, the second wave will swell again and it will be very high and we have to take it very seriously, Dr. Braithwaite said.
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