The last:
The British Transport Minister has ordered the halt of flights and arrivals from South Africa after a potentially more infectious variant of the new coronavirus causing the spread of COVID-19 in Britain.
“I have made the decision to temporarily halt flights and arrivals entering England from South Africa as of 9am tomorrow following an outbreak of a new strain of coronavirus,” he said. Grant Shapps, British Secretary of Transport.
Earlier on Wednesday, UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock said scientists had identified another new variant of the coronavirus in two people, who are contacts of newcomers from South Africa.
Hancock said the evidence gathered so far suggests that the new variant has “mutated more” than the one that recently led the UK government to tighten restrictions across much of England and led many countries to impose travel bans on the UK. United.
SEE | The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines can be modified to combat the variants, says the expert:
According to infectious disease specialist Dr. Zain Chagla, vaccines using mRNA technology can be reverse engineered quickly enough to adopt variants, such as the recent British variant of the coronavirus. 1:42
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The Health Secretary also announced that more areas in England will be placed under the highest level of coronavirus restrictions in an attempt to slow the spread of a more communicable variant of COVID-19.
Hancock said that from December 26, large areas in southern England would join London and neighboring areas on Level 4 with restrictions similar to a lockdown.
What is happening in canada
Health Canada approved Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine for use in that country on Wednesday, paving the way for thousands of doses to arrive before the end of the month. Moderna’s is the second COVID-19 vaccine approved by Health Canada.
Also Wednesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the federal government was spending an additional $ 70 million for the Canadian Red Cross, as it faced a growing demand for help from long-term care centers in Ontario and Quebec that have seen overwhelmed by the pandemic.
Trudeau also announced that Canada will extend the ban on flights from Britain for another two weeks until January 6, as the UK grapples with a new strain of COVID-19 that experts say is more contagious than other variants.
As of 6:45 p.m. ET as of Wednesday, the number of COVID-19 cases in Canada was 528,354, of which 75,305 were considered active. A CBC News death count was 14,597 people.
British columbia On Wednesday, 518 new cases of COVID-19 and 19 more deaths were registered.
Provincial Health Administrator Dr. Bonnie Henry on Wednesday unveiled new epidemiological models showing that the second wave of the pandemic has begun to slow in response to new restrictive measures limiting gatherings and social events.
“We have rounded our curve a bit. We may be on a downward trajectory now, ”Henry said.
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Alberta announced 1,301 new COVID-19 cases and 19 additional deaths.
Dr. Deena Hinshaw, the province’s chief medical officer, said Wednesday that Alberta’s measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 in schools are working and the number of cases suggests students are getting sicker more frequency. outside of their classrooms.
Hinshaw said the number of new cases among elementary, middle and high school students roughly tripled from early November to the end of the month, then leveled off and declined in recent weeks.
SEE | Scene from the weekend rallies held in Calgary:
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Calgarians took to the streets on December 19 and 20 to protest COVID-19 restrictions. 0:50
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Saskatchewan announced 159 new COVID-19 infections and five new deaths.
Manitoba reported 201 new cases and 15 additional deaths.
Ontario recorded 2,408 new cases, its second highest count in a single day, and 41 new deaths. There were 1,002 people hospitalized with COVID-19, including a record 275 in intensive care. The entire province will be closed after midnight on December 26.
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Hard hit Quebec recorded 2,247 new cases of COVID-19, another daily high. Hospitalizations totaled 1,067, including 142 patients in intensive care units in Quebec, according to provincial data.
New brunswick saw five new cases. Meanwhile, vaccination of health workers in Moncton has begun.
Newfoundland y Labrador added a new case. New Scotland added four.
SEE | NS Business supports charities by selling masks:
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Sherrie Kearney of Maritime Tartan manufactured more than 18,000 masks during the COVID-19 pandemic and donated thousands to charities. Their latest fundraiser includes a tie signed by Dr. Robert Strang, who gave them a loud shout. 4.30 p.m.
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Prince edward island announced the availability of a new online resource on mental health and addictions. Demand for access to mental health services has been a pressing issue on Prince Edward Island during the pandemic, and the number of islanders have consulted with mental health professionals. double, the closure of the psychiatric unit at Queen Elizabeth Hospital and challenges encountered by those who struggle with addictions.
In the north, officials welcomed the news of the approval of the Moderna vaccine. Yukon, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories They are expected to receive shipments at the end of the month and plan to begin rolling out the vaccines in early January.
What’s happening in the world
As of early Wednesday morning, more than 78.2 million COVID-19 cases had been reported worldwide, and more than 44.1 million of these cases were considered recovered or resolved, according to a Universidad Johns Hopkins tracking tool. The global death toll exceeded 1.7 million.
In the week of December 14 to 20:
4.6 million people infected and 79,000 died of # COVID-19
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Latest weekly epidemiological update: https://t.co/14hRmBfIzk pic.twitter.com/csF87dr2qF
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Inside EuropeItaly registered 14,522 new positive cases of coronavirus on Wednesday, the last day before stricter restrictions for the Christmas holidays go into effect.
Despite the measures put in place since the end of October, Italy has still not managed to flatten the curve of the autumnal revival.
Starting Thursday, Italians will have to submit statements about their reasons for leaving, just like during the strict 10-week lockout in the spring. Vacation restrictions, until January 6, allow some leeway to visit friends and family in the same area.
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Inside AsiaSouth Korea has added 1,092 new cases of the coronavirus in a resurgence that erases hard-won epidemiological advances and erodes public confidence in the government’s ability to handle the outbreak.
The number of cases nationwide has risen by a quarter in the last two weeks alone, the death toll is rising, and the number of sick patients is raising concerns about a shortage of intensive care beds.
South Korea had been deemed a success against COVID-19 after healthcare workers successfully contained a major outbreak in its southeastern region in the spring. But critics say the country has built on its own success in easing physical distance restrictions to help the economy.
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Inside Africa, South Africa’s health minister said the country had registered more than 14,000 new confirmed cases of coronavirus in the last day, with a positivity rate of 26%, as the total of cases advanced to 1 million. .
Health Minister Zwelini Mkhize said the “alarming rate of spread” of infections is much faster than during the first wave in mid-year. Its daily report does not say how many new infections are attributed to the new variant of the virus in South Africa.
The country has more than 950,000 confirmed cases, including more than 25,000 deaths. More than 400 people died last day.
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at Americas, Peru has exceeded one million confirmed cases of coronavirus infection. It is the fifth Latin American country to report this figure as the region grapples with the economic and health effects of the pandemic.
The Peruvian government rushed to declare blockade measures for its 32 million inhabitants last March as the pandemic swept across Europe. But despite closing its airports for nearly six months and ordering most of its residents to stay home, it has struggled to contain the virus. Authorities said they recorded 1,000,153 cases Tuesday night.
More than 37,000 people have died from COVID-19 in Peru. This gives the Andean nation the second highest number of deaths per capita in the world from the pandemic, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.
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