Record numbers – Corona case numbers climb to dizzying heights worldwide

The coronavirus is spreading dramatically. The number of new corona infections worldwide has reached the highest weekly value since the beginning of the pandemic. Around the world from December 22nd to 28th, an average of more than 935,000 infections per day were detected, as the AFP news agency reported on Wednesday based on information from the authorities.

Most new infections are currently recorded in Europe, where a total of more than 3.5 million cases have been recorded in the past seven days. That was an average of more than 510,000 cases per day – also a new record.

According to the latest information, France reported 208,000 positive cases within the last 24 hours. The French Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, said: “I tend to speak of a tidal wave.” In France, two people would become infected with the virus every second. “Those are numbers that make me dizzy,” says Véran. In view of the rapidly increasing number of cases, testing alone is no longer enough.

Health Minister Olivier Véran defended the plan in a parliamentary hearing on Wednesday to only allow people with full vaccination protection to access restaurants, cinemas, theaters, museums and sports arenas. Proof of this is then also required for the use of long-distance trains and domestic flights; a negative test is no longer accepted. This should be in effect by mid-January.

In Denmark, the number of new infections has also risen to a new high since the start of the pandemic. As the Danish health authority announced on Wednesday, 23,228 new cases of infection were registered within 24 hours. The previous high was reached on Monday with 16,164 new cases. The seven-day incidence is more than 1700, which is the highest value in the world, ahead of Malta, Ireland, Iceland and the UK.

According to the health authorities, the new maximum value for new infections is mainly due to a very large number of PCR tests that were carried out after Christmas. The so-called positivity rate, the proportion of positive corona tests, remained almost constant at 12.3 percent.

With more than 129,000 cases, Great Britain also has a new high in new corona infections. The authorities reported 129,471 new infections in England and Wales within 24 hours. The figures from Northern Ireland and Scotland were not yet available due to delays in sending data over the holidays.

On Tuesday evening, the Italian Ministry of Health reported more than 78,300 new corona infections within one day and thus far more than twice as many as the day before.

The health authorities in Spain reported 214,619 new cases on Monday evening. Never that many before. The 14-day incidence rose to 1206 per 100,000 inhabitants. At the height of the January wave, which has so far affected most people in Spain, the incidence was 900.

In both countries, the omicron variant of the coronavirus is responsible for the explosive increase, which according to scientists is spreading faster than previous variants. However, the number of infected patients who need hospital treatment is relatively lower than in previous outbreaks.

In response to the rising number of cases, some Spanish regions are now considering restrictions that they were resisting a week ago. So far, the authorities have only made it compulsory to wear masks outdoors.

From Thursday, all taverns, bars and pubs in Greece have to close at midnight. “Most of the cases are of the omicron variant,” said the health minister.

On Tuesday, the number of new corona infections had doubled to a good 21,600 compared to Monday. On Wednesday, the Ministry of Health in Athens expected around 30,000 new corona cases, as reported by the state broadcaster.

In the USA, the previous high of 252,000 cases was exceeded last January. According to figures from the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore on Wednesday, 265,427 corona cases were reported within 24 hours on a seven-day average. The actual number of infections is likely to be significantly higher: Many infections go unnoticed or are only detected by tests at home, the results of which are not officially registered. There have been more than 820 in the US since the pandemic began‘000 people died as a result of a corona infection. This is the highest number registered in the world.

In Australia, the number of new corona infections is going through the roof because of the Omicron variant. In the state of New South Wales with the metropolis of Sydney alone, more than 11,000 new infections were found on Wednesday, almost twice as many as the day before. In Queensland state, 80 percent of cases have been traced back to the omicron mutation.

In South Australia, the government said it needed to limit the number of operations that could be planned. A booster vaccination is prescribed for employees in the healthcare sector. People entering from other states could no longer be tested across the board. “Omikron is moving too fast,” said Prime Minister Steven Marshall. One must now concentrate the forces on the infected who are treated in hospitals. In New South Wales, thousands often waited hours for a test.

The Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) in Switzerland also reported the highest values ​​since the beginning of the pandemic on Wednesday. With 17,634 cases, the positivity rate is also higher than ever at 26.4 percent. The federal scientific task force expects that we will reach the number of 20,000 daily new infections by mid-January.

The rise in new infections has so far not been reflected in the number of deaths, which has been falling worldwide for three weeks. Over the past seven days, an average of around 6,450 deaths per day has been recorded. The previous weekly high was reached between January 20 and 26, with 14,800 deaths per day.