We’ve been having rounds of Covid-19 vaccinations distributed around the country, and just as you think that you can kinda not get less worked up about the pandemic, things start to take a new turn.
Boris Johnson, UK’s Prime Minister has shared that the newest strain of the virus could be up to 30% more dangerous.
On Friday (22 Jan) Johnson told the country that there might be a need for tighter travel restrictions and a lengthened lockdown.
This new B117 strain of coronavirus has the capability to spike the death rate by up to 40 per cent, according to the researchers at UK’s Nervtag (New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group).
Johnson also shared that right now, 1 out of 10 adults in England have taken a vaccine.
Singapore Cases With The New Strain
On 30 Dec 2020, Singapore reported two Covid-19 patients with the B117 virus. Both patients had returned from the UK.
Case no 58811 had travelled for work purposes and was in the UK from Dec 19 to Dec 22.
His initial test results on Dec 23 after returning to Singapore came back negative. The patient, sadly, developed a fever by Dec 26. He did a swab test at a general practitioner clinic the next day. His results were reported as positive on Dec 29, and he was taken to the NCID via ambulance.
The second case was case 58809. This person is a Work Pass holder who returned from the UK on Dec 7. Upon reaching Singapore, he was placed on SHN at one of its designated facilities.
When tested on 17 Dec, case 58809’s results came in as negative for Covid-19.
There’s also another patient – case 59028 who contracted the virus’ new strain. He was a Korean work permit holder who delivered pre-packed meals to hotel guests and aircrew in Azur. Thankfully he was not involved in guest interactions.
Spread to 60 Countries
As the virus can be up to 70 per cent more transmissible, it has made its way across the world.
Up to 4 days back, it has hit at least 60 countries, according to the World Health Organization.
In Europe, the B117 has made its way to Denmark, Sweden, Netherlands, France, Switzerland, Spain, Italy, and Germany so far.
Japan, Australia, and Canada have also not been spared.
And if that weren’t enough, a South African strain of the Covid-19 virus has emerged. It has now infected 23 countries based on WHO’s weekly updates.
Nevertheless, it’s reported that the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is still effective against the new strain, so the goal is to go for the vaccine when it’s available.
Featured Image: heardinlondon / Shutterstock.com
Here’s a simplified summary of the South Korea martial law that even a 5-year-old would understand:
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