Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said on Saturday “extremely” concerned about the spread of the omicron variant of the coronavirus, now dominant in the British capital, and triggered an alert procedure involving a coordinated response from public services.
Across the UK, 90,418 new cases of Covid-19 were recorded on Saturday, down slightly from the previous day (more than 93,000) and after three consecutive days of new daily records. “The increase in the number of cases of the omicron variant in our capital is extremely worrying”, the Labor Mayor of London said in a statement, announcing that he had declared for the second time since the start of the pandemic a “Major incident”.
A procedure initiated a year ago
This procedure had already been triggered on January 8, 2021 when London hospitals were threatened with submersion. “The omicron variant has quickly become dominant with the number of cases increasing rapidly and the number of patients in our hospitals is on the rise again”Sadiq Khan added, calling on all Londoners to get vaccinated.
According to the City of London, the city has registered 65,525 new cases of coronavirus in the past seven days, including 26,418 in the past 24 hours. Many public services such as hospitals, firefighters or the police are thus faced with staff shortages due to absences caused by the virus. The British health security agency said on Saturday that more than 10,000 new confirmed cases of the omicron variant have been detected, bringing the total to nearly 25,000. As of Friday, more than 93,000 new cases of Covid-19 were identified in total, breaking a new record for the third day in a row.
According to several British media, the government plans to ban indoor gatherings after Christmas for two weeks in an attempt to break the wave of contamination. One of the hardest hit countries, the United Kingdom has deplored more than 147,000 deaths since the start of the pandemic.
Europe in full swing
In Paris, the town hall announced on Saturday the cancellation of the fireworks and concerts planned on the famous avenue des Champs-Elysées for New Year’s Eve. Prime Minister Jean Castex asked town halls on Friday to give up concerts and fireworks on the evening of December 31, during which alcohol consumption on public roads will be prohibited.
In Ireland, bars, pubs and restaurants will have to close from 8 p.m. from Sunday until the end of January. Denmark, which on Friday recorded a new absolute record of 11,000 cases including 2,500 omicron, will close its theaters, cinemas and concert halls for one month on Sunday, as well as its amusement parks and museums.
And in the Netherlands, strict anti-Covid measures should be announced this Saturday evening, the team of experts advising the government having advocated a return to containment in order to curb the spread of the omicron variant.