WHO: Europe may face a second lethal wave of Covid-19 this fall
The WHO regional director for the continent said that this is the time for “preparations, not celebrations”.
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The return may be more aggressive.
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European countries must prepare for a second “lethal” wave of the new coronavirus, because the pandemic “is not over yet”. Hans Kluge, regional director of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Europe, said this in an interview with the British newspaper “The Telegraph“.
This expert’s warning went to countries that have now started to relax their containment measures, stressing that this is the time for “preparations, not celebrations”. According to Hans Kluge, although the number of cases in the UK, France and Italy are now decreasing, this does not mean that the pandemic is coming to an end.
The specialist stressed that we are just going through a change in the epicenter of the outbreak in Europe, which started in the Lombardy region, in Italy, and is now focused on the east of the continent, with emphasis on Russia and the more than 10,000 cases that has registered consecutively per day.
Hans Kluge also said he was “very concerned” about a second wave of the pandemic, which may arrive during the fall and coincide with outbreaks of other infectious diseases. “We could have a second wave of Covid-19 and another of seasonal flu or measles,” he said.
As a comparison, he recalled what happened to pandemics over time, as in the case of the Spanish flu, which emerged in March 1918 and returned more aggressive and lethal in the autumn of the same year.
“History has taught us that, when it comes to pandemics, countries that were not hit early can be hit in a second wave. What are we going to see in Africa and Eastern Europe? They are behind the curve. Some countries say ‘we’re not like Italy’ and two weeks later ‘boom’. Unfortunately, we can be hit by a second wave, so we have to be very careful ”, he warned.
As there is still no cure or treatment, the specialist believes that the relaxation of restrictions must be done “gradually”, knowing that “nothing has changed”. “Disease control measures must be in place, that is the key message”.
On the impact that the pandemic is having on the global economy, Hans Kluge recalled that “where there is no health, there is no economy. It is a lesson that cannot be forgotten ”.
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