Indonesia nearing Covid-19 ‘catastrophe’, Red Cross says; India approves Moderna vaccine
- Indonesia has reported record daily Covid-19 infections of more than 20,000 in recent days, in a new wave of infections fuelled by highly transmissible variants
- Meanwhile, two more Australian regional capitals were put under lockdown on Tuesday, and Pakistanis stormed a vaccination centre in hunt for non-China jabs
“Every day we are seeing this Delta variant driving Indonesia closer to the edge of a Covid-19 catastrophe,” said Jan Gelfand, head of the Indonesian delegation of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), urging better vaccine access globally.
Hospitals in several designated “red zone” areas have reported overcapacity, including the capital Jakarta, with its isolation beds 93 per cent occupied as of Sunday.
“Hospitals are full because of the case surge caused by mobility and loosening health protocol adherence, worsened also by the Delta variant,” said senior health ministry official Siti Nadia Tarmizi, when asked about the IFRC’s assessment.
The Delta variant was first identified in India and has been blamed for big spikes in infections in many countries. Indonesia is banking on mass vaccinations as a means of tackling the virus, but only 13.3 million of the 181.5 million targeted for inoculation have received the required two doses since January.
Indonesia’s health minister is leading a push for stricter controls as infections surge to unprecedented levels, sources familiar with government discussions have told Reuters.
Citing unnamed sources, The Straits Times newspaper on Tuesday reported the government in Jakarta will tighten restrictions starting on Wednesday, prohibiting restaurant dining and requiring negative polymerase chain reaction tests for domestic air travel.