Coronavirus: US to help as India weathers ‘storm’; Tokyo sees third virus emergency
- India has become the new pandemic hotspot, with over 16 million cases recorded. New Delhi is extending its week-long lockdown
- Elsewhere, there’s a new state of emergency in the Tokyo and Osaka regions, while 50,000 people turned out for a concert in virus-free New Zealand
The United States said it was deeply concerned by the massive surge in coronavirus cases in India and was racing to send aid.
India’s number of cases surged by 349,691 in the past 24 hours, the fourth straight day of record peaks, and hospitals in Delhi and across the country are turning away patients after running out of medical oxygen and beds.
“We were confident, our spirits were up after successfully tackling the first wave, but this storm has shaken the nation,” Modi said in a radio address.
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Hospitals and doctors have put out urgent notices that they were unable to cope with the rush of patients. People were arranging stretchers and oxygen cylinders outside hospitals as they desperately pleaded for authorities to take patients in, witnesses said.
“Every day, it the same situation, we are left with two hours of oxygen, we only get assurances from the authorities,” one doctor said on television.
Outside a Sikh temple in Ghaziabad city on the outskirts of Delhi the street resembled an emergency ward of a hospital, but crammed with cars carrying Covid-19 patients gasping for breath as they were hooked up to hand held oxygen tanks.
Delhi’s Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal extended a lockdown in the capital that was due to end on Monday for a week to try and stem the transmission of the virus which is killing one person every four minutes.
“A lockdown was the last weapon we had to deal with the coronavirus but with cases rising so quickly we had to use this weapon,” he said.
India’s total tally of infections stands at 16.96 million and deaths 192,311 after 2,767 more died overnight, health ministry data showed.
In the last month alone, daily cases have gone up eight times and deaths by 10 times. Health experts say the death count is probably far higher.
The US said it was “deeply concerned” about the coronavirus situation in India. “We are in active conversations at high levels and plan to quickly deploy additional support to the Government of India and Indian health care workers as they battle this latest severe outbreak,” a White House spokeswoman said.
“Our hearts go out to the Indian people in the midst of the horrific Covid-19 outbreak,” US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said on Twitter. “We are working closely with our partners in the Indian government, and we will rapidly deploy additional support to the people of India and India’s health care heroes.”
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The United States has faced criticism in India for its export controls on raw materials for vaccines put in place via the Defense Production Act and an associated export embargo in February.
India’s surge is expected to peak in mid-May with the daily count of infections reaching half a million, The Indian Express said citing an internal government assessment.
Neighbouring Pakistan said late on Saturday night it would offer medical assistance to India. The offer came after Prime Minister Imran Khan in a tweet prayed for the “speedy recovery of the Indian people affected by the virus”.
Third virus emergency launched in Tokyo, Osaka area
Japanese on Sunday saw tougher Covid-19 measures introduced in Tokyo and the prefectures of Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo under a third state of emergency amid a surge in infections.
Under the new restrictions, operators of restaurants serving alcohol and cinemas are required to close temporarily and sports events will be held without spectators.
The emergency declaration will be effective for 17 days through May 11 in a bid to curb infections during the upcoming Golden Week holidays from late April to early May.
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While the state of emergency does not entail a hard lockdown of the kind some other countries have imposed and largely relies on the cooperation of the public and businesses, the measures have more teeth than the previous declaration in January.
Authorities are also asking the operators of karaoke establishments as well as tourism spots such as Tokyo Sky Tree and Universal Studios Japan in Osaka to close.
Department stores in the designated areas are only selling food and other daily essentials.
Public transport operators such as train and bus companies have been asked to end operations earlier on weeknights, with reduced services on weekends and holidays.
While a quasi-state of emergency was designated in the major cities of Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto as well as in Hyogo and six other prefectures earlier this month, the measures have been unsuccessful in bringing down coronavirus cases.
Singapore’s Shangri-La Dialogue to be held as ‘bubble’ event
Meetings and talks at the forum will take place freely and delegates will be allowed to move around the Shangri-La Hotel with minimal restrictions, the newspaper reported. Still, rigorous health measures will be implemented, it said, without elaborating.
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The dialogue, organised by the International Institute for Strategic Studies, usually draws top defence officials from the US, China and other major economies around the world to discuss vital security issues. The institute said on its website earlier that it will convene the next meeting in June.
Last year, the event was cancelled for the first time since its inception in 2002.
Singapore has largely brought the coronavirus under control and has been pushing ahead with reopening for events including conferences and exhibitions.
The World Economic Forum’s marquee event expected to be hosted by the city state in August will also likely be held in a dedicated event zone.
Thailand sees record deaths for second day
Thailand on Sunday set a record for the daily number of coronavirus deaths for the second consecutive day.
Thailand reported 2,438 new coronavirus cases and 11 new deaths, bringing the total number of infections to 55,460 and fatalities to 140 since the pandemic started last year.
It will slow down issuing travel documents for foreign nationals from India due to the outbreak of a new coronavirus B.1.617 variant, said Taweesin Wisanuyothin, a spokesman for the government’s Covid-19 task force.
“For foreigners from India entering Thailand, right now we will slow this down,” said Taweesin adding that 131 Thai nationals in India already registered to travel in May will still be allowed into the country.
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Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said on his Facebook page on Saturday that provincial governors could close public venues and impose curfews if necessary to stop the virus spreading.
Authorities in the capital city of Bangkok have ordered the closure of venues including parks, gyms, cinemas and day care centres from April 26 through May 9.
Shopping malls remain open but the Thai Retailers Association has restricted store opening hours in Bangkok as well as in 17 more of the country’s 73 provinces.
Thailand kept its number of infection cases far lower than many other countries throughout last year, but a new outbreak, spurred partly by the highly transmissible B.1.1.7 variant, has resulted in over 24,000 cases and 46 deaths in just 25 days.
The rising figures have prompted concern over the number of hospital beds, particularly as government policy is to admit anyone testing positive for the novel coronavirus, even those without symptoms.
Health officials have insisted there are still over 20,000 available beds nationwide.
To free beds quicker, the prime minister has said health authorities are considering reducing the quarantine period for asymptomatic cases to 10 days from 14, with the remaining four days to be spent in self-isolation at home.
Packed concert in virus-free New Zealand
New Zealand band Six60 performed at Eden Park in Auckland to a sold-out event that featured pyrotechnics and was live-streamed to nations across the South Pacific.
With no social-distancing or mask-wearing required, the concert was a demonstration of New Zealand’s success in controlling the coronavirus through closing its international border and rigorous testing and contact tracing.
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It is a stark contrast to other countries across the world that are in lockdown amid surging infections.
“Our city has shown the world this week that in the midst of a global pandemic, we can live close to normality in Auckland,” Auckland Mayor Phil Goff said in a statement.
Reporting by Reuters, Kyodo, Bloomberg, Agence France-Presse