Category Archives: Infectious Diseases

Britons stranded in Bali call for UK evacuation flights as coronavirus cuts routes

Posted on by

Some travellers told they could be stuck for months because transit countries will not accept passengers from Indonesia

British nationals stuck on the Indonesian holiday island of Bali are calling on the government to bring them home, saying they face the prospect of being trapped for months due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

Two travellers told the Guardian they had tried to follow Foreign Office advice to return home immediately due to the escalating seriousness of the Covid-19 outbreak, only to arrive at Bali’s Denpasar airport and be told they would not be able to board flights due to travel restrictions in countries through which they transit.

Continue reading...

Trump’s push to shorten the coronavirus shutdown proves the captain is flying blind | David Smith

Posted on by

To watch Trump is to witness the awesome and terrifying power of the American president over life and death – a burden he is unqualified to bear

Due to social distancing, there were only two dozen or so reporters in the White House press briefing room on Monday, making it feel like a flight with numerous empty seats and lots of legroom.

But when Donald Trump let rip for nearly two hours, it was as if the captain had announced a sudden whim to land the plane on water while wearing a blindfold. We sat tight for an unnerving journey.

Continue reading...

Australia’s food supply relies on migrant workers, many of whom are facing coronavirus limbo | Victoria Stead

Posted on by

As borders close and social distancing increases, what are our responsibilities to the people who keep working?

Amid coronavirus-induced stockpiling and empty supermarket shelves, politicians have been quick to assure us of the reliability of Australia’s food supply systems.

Writing for the Guardian last week, agriculture minister David Littleproud slammed “ridiculous” panic-buying, saying: “It is important to understand that Australian farmers produce enough food for 75 million people: three times what we need”. Farmers, he continued, are “calmly going about the business of food production”, “preparing to sow and pick their crops and making sure their produce makes it to market”.

Continue reading...

Coronavirus live news: global death toll passes 15,000 as WHO warns spread of virus is accelerating

Posted on by

Edouard Philippe, the French prime minister, has said that country’s lockdown could last several more weeks, with new restrictions – including limits on daily exercise outside the home – now in place:

Any morning constitutional/jogging now has to be within 1km of home, 1 hour max, alone, and only once per day. https://t.co/3CvQzDtZpb

The International Olympic Committee is facing almost irresistible pressure to postpone the Tokyo Olympics this week rather than wait until its mid-April deadline – with a growing number of athletes, governments and national federations saying it is unfair to keep them in limbo during the coronavirus pandemic.

Veteran IOC member Dick Pound told USA Today that the Games would be postponed, likely to 2021, with the details to be worked out in the next four weeks. “The parameters going forward have not been determined, but the Games are not going to start on July 24, that much I know.”

Related: Athletes across globe call for Olympic postponement as countries pull out

Continue reading...

Crown court trials on hold while judges seek ways to protect juries

Posted on by

Pause follows uncertainty over how trials would work given physical distancing needs

Crown court trials across England and Wales were suspended or collapsed on Monday as judges attempted to find safer ways for juries and lawyers to conduct hearings.

There have been suggestions, including from the Ministry of Justice, that courts move to handling urgent work only during the coronavirus crisis, but no one has defined what types of cases that might involve.

Continue reading...

Is it OK to shout at strangers who aren’t social distancing? Absolutely | Hadley Freeman

Posted on by

My favourite video right now shows a variety of Italian mayors telling off their citizens in no uncertain terms – and it is exactly the approach we need here

Is it acceptable to shout at people – not just friends and family, but also strangers – for not practising social distancing?
Martin, London

Status update on me: I am spending every day, all day, inside my home with three children under five and a deranged, underwalked terrier who barks incessantly at his own reflection in the window. Am I lucky? You bet: I have a home and, so far, everyone has their health. But does my life also resemble a Channel 5 reality TV show? Maybe just a touch.

Continue reading...

Spanish police sing to families during coronavirus lockdown in Mallorca – video

Posted on by

Police in Mallorca were seen playing guitar and singing to entertain families as they remain in a nationwide lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The Spanish island will remain on lockdown after the government sought to extend the restrictions on movement until 11 April. One resident of the town of Algaida, Heidi Friedenberger, filmed the officers emerging from their car, singing a song and then leaving again, as neighbours watched on

Continue reading...

‘Everyone will be contaminated’: prisons face strict coronavirus controls

Posted on by

New WHO guidelines are aimed at protecting one of the most vulnerable sectors of society from the spread of Covid-19

Prisons around the world can expect “huge mortality rates” from Covid-19 unless they take immediate action including screening for the disease, the World Health Organization has warned.

All visitors to prisons along with staff and new admissions should be subject to airport-style temperature testing and health assessments at point of entry, the agency has recommended under new guidelines published today.

Continue reading...

Russia may delay Putin vote as coronavirus threatens political agenda

Posted on by

Vote allowing president to run for fifth or even sixth term likely to be rescheduled

Russia may be forced to put off a public vote on amendments allowing Vladimir Putin to hold office potentially until 2036 as the coronavirus threatens to upend a busy political season in Russia.

The Kremlin so far has not rescheduled the 22 April vote that was intended as a public endorsement for Putin’s surprise plan to “reset” his term limits, allowing him to run for a fifth or even sixth term as president under a revised constitution.

Continue reading...

Coronavirus: doctors and nurses in Belfast post message urging public to stay at home – video

Posted on by

Healthcare workers on the frontline of the coronavirus outbreak in Northern Ireland have made an appeal to the public. In a video, doctors and nurses from the Belfast trust respiratory team urge people to stay at home in order to save lives

Continue reading...

The isolated tribes at risk of illness from Amazon missionaries

Posted on by

As evangelical Christians use their influence with Brazil’s government to cast their net ever wider, indigenous people vulnerable to common diseases face a growing threat

A radical group of evangelical Christian missionaries set on converting every last tribe on Earth has raised fears that deadly diseases – and even the coronavirus – will spread in the Brazilian Amazon. The group has based its newly bought helicopter right beside a reserve with the world’s highest concentration of isolated indigenous groups, who have little resistance to common illnesses.

There are more than 100 isolated indigenous groups in Brazil, all highly vulnerable to common diseases such as measles and flu, and 16 of them live in the same reserve in the Javari Valley, a vast, remote area the size of Austria. Covid-19 could wipe out any of them.

Continue reading...

This virus is ravaging rich countries. What happens when it hits the poor ones? | Nesrine Malik

Posted on by

Horror over the west’s failure to contain Covid-19 will pale by comparison if it sweeps the developing world

Though Africa has fewer coronavirus cases and a slower rate of infection than the UK, many countries in the continent have passed dramatically more extreme measures to prevent its spread than Britain has. In my birth country of Sudan, after only one case and one death was registered, all schools and universities were shut down. Several other nations, such as Egypt, have taken the ultimate precaution and closed their airports.

There is no denial here, no mixed messaging, and no unfounded promise of how soon we will send the virus packing.

Continue reading...

Australia shuts down, in the fight against Covid-19 – in pictures

Posted on by

Australia’s major cities, buildings and even beaches are either closed or deserted as the government steps up measures to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Prime minister Scott Morrison announced late on Sunday that from midday Monday venues such as bars, clubs, nightclubs, cinemas and gyms would be closed, and restaurants would be restricted to offering takeaway. Schools remain open but parents have the option to keep children at home, while Victoria is bringing forward school holidays from Tuesday

Continue reading...

Brazilians protest over Bolsonaro’s muddled coronavirus response

Posted on by

Citizens make anger known by hitting pots and pans from their windows and balconies

Brazil’s far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro, is facing an intensifying public backlash after his muddled reaction to the coronavirus crisis sparked five successive nights of protests and predictions that his political authority had sustained a potentially fatal blow.

Brazil has recorded 1,128 coronavirus cases and 18 deaths, with the country’s health minister last week saying the public health system was likely to collapse by the end of April.

Continue reading...

Australia’s coronavirus rescue package is a step in the right direction – but we needed a leap | Stephen Koukoulas

Posted on by

The measures taken in response to the coronavirus crisis will support growth, but they will be slow to come into effect and aren’t enough

• Follow our global coronavirus live blog
• What the $189bn economic rescue package means for you
• Why Australia is easing superannuation access for those worst-hit

The $66bn second stage of the government’s economic policy response to the coronavirus crisis is a genuine effort to underpin the economy as it lurches towards the deepest economic downturn since the 1930s great depression.

Unfortunately for those losing their jobs, their hours of work and their businesses, there is an unseemly delay before most of the measures reach the bank accounts of those in need.

Continue reading...

Tokyo Olympics organisers considering options to delay – reports

Posted on by

As thousands flock to the Olympic flame in Japan, the organising committee is reportedly drafting plans to postpone the Games

As huge crowds defied coronavirus fears to queue for hours to see the Olympic flame in northern Japan, a report emerged that organisers of Tokyo 2020 have begun drafting alternatives to holding the Games this summer.

In contrast to the official line from the Japanese government and the IOC, two sources familiar with the talks have told news agency Reuters that options for postponing the Games are now being drawn up.

Continue reading...

As Australia goes off the coronavirus cliff, the question is how hard will it land? | Katharine Murphy

Posted on by

A significant spike in cases and state lockdowns are signals that life has changed. It’s all now on the health system

Anyone watching events on Sunday will know the coronavirus story is now moving so fast it is hard to keep on top of what’s happening.

So let’s keep this simple. Let’s be very clear what happened.

Continue reading...

Australia is easing superannuation access for those worst-hit by coronavirus. But can we afford it?

Posted on by

Tax-free withdrawals will be capped at $10,000 this financial year and will allow those struggling to pay rent, meet mortgage repayments and buy food

• What Australia’s $189bn coronavirus economic rescue package means for you
• Follow our Australia coronavirus live blog
• Follow our global coronavirus live blog

Australians who are laid off as a result of the coronavirus outbreak will be allowed to pull money out of their superannuation, Scott Morrison announced on Sunday.

Withdrawals will be capped at $10,000 this financial year, and a further $10,000 next financial year, and will be tax-free, the prime minister and his treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, said.

Continue reading...

UK military planners drafted in to help feed vulnerable in Covid-19 outbreak

Posted on by

Food stockpilers told they should be ‘ashamed’ as prime minister urges Britons not to make mother’s day visits

Key military officials are to help ensure food and medicines reach vulnerable people isolated at home during the coronavirus crisis, as part of a nationwide campaign to protect more than a million people most at risk of being hospitalised.

Community pharmacies, voluntary groups and food retailers are in talks with the government to ensure essential items reach people being told to remain in their home. Those believed to be at most risk are being contacted on how best to protect themselves, and being strongly advised to stay home for at least 12 weeks.

Continue reading...

Doctors warn coronavirus could overwhelm NHS ‘within weeks’

Posted on by

Intensive care audit shows sharp rise in admissions to critical care as London hospitals struggle to cope

The numbers of coronavirus patients needing life-or-death care have been doubling every three days, a report by senior doctors has revealed. London is worst affected, but the rest of the UK will soon be hit with a similar surge, the document warns.

The audit of intensive care carried out since the epidemic began shows that patients needing the highest level of help soared from 50 on 9 March to almost 200 on 19 March – and doctors fear this spike could turn into a nationwide surge within a few weeks.

Continue reading...