Coronavirus: Hot spots
1 in 10 globally may be infected with coronavirus, says WHO
New York City faces fresh curbs as cases rise; infections surge in other parts of the world
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Some 20 hot spots in Brooklyn (left) and Queens that have been experiencing rising virus positivity rates will be targeted with new restrictions, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Sunday as he announced an emergency crackdown amid fears of a second wave of the coronavirus in the city.
PHOTO: NYTIMES
GENEVA • Roughly one in 10 people may have been infected with the coronavirus, leaving the vast majority of the world's population vulnerable to the related Covid-19 disease, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said yesterday.
Dr Mike Ryan, WHO's top emergency expert, told the agency's executive board that outbreaks were surging in parts of South-east Asia, and that cases and deaths were on the rise in parts of Europe and the eastern Mediterranean region.
"Our current best estimates tell us 10 per cent of the global population may have been infected by this virus. It varies depending on country, it varies from urban to rural, it varies depending on groups. But what it does mean is that the vast majority of the world remain at risk," Dr Ryan said.
Over in the United States, public health officials have expressed concern that a second wave of the coronavirus would hit New York City, which until recently had achieved striking success in beating back the outbreak after a devastating spring that left more than 20,000 residents dead.
On Sunday, with those fears growing, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced an emergency crackdown, saying that he intended to impose new restrictions on 20 hot spots in Brooklyn and Queens that have been experiencing rising positivity rates.
The plan is a major setback for New York City, amounting to the first significant reversal in its reopening and offering further evidence of the challenges in curbing the pandemic.
The city, over the last month, had taken several strides forward, allowing indoor dining for the first time and becoming the first major school district in the country to allow children back into its public schools.
But under the new restrictions, Mr de Blasio would close all schools - public and private - in nine of the city's 146 zip codes, as well as all non-essential businesses. Indoor and outdoor dining in restaurants in those areas will not be allowed.
"Today, unfortunately, is not a day for celebration," Mr de Blasio said. "Today is a more difficult day."
The nine areas have large populations of Orthodox Jews - communities where the virus has been spreading rapidly and where public health officials have struggled to persuade many residents to adhere to guidelines on mask wearing and social distancing.
Those areas all have had positivity rates in recent days of more than 3 per cent of those tested - and some as high as 8 per cent - in contrast to the city's overall rate of about 1.5 per cent.
Public health officials have been worried that the uptick in cases would jump from Orthodox neighbourhoods to others, leading to a resurgence of the virus across the city.
If approved by Governor Andrew Cuomo, the plan would go into effect tomorrow.
Elsewhere in the US, nine states have reported record increases in Covid-19 cases over the last seven days, mostly in the upper Midwest and West where chilly weather is forcing more activities indoors.
Last Saturday alone, four states - Kentucky, Minnesota, Montana and Wisconsin - saw record increases in new cases, and nationally nearly 49,000 new infections were reported, the highest for a Saturday in seven weeks, according to a Reuters analysis.
Kansas, Nebraska, New Hampshire, South Dakota and Wyoming also set new records for cases last week.
Health experts have long warned that colder temperatures driving people inside could promote the spread of the virus.
Daytime highs in the upper Midwest are now in the 10 deg C range.
NYTIMES, REUTERS
