COVID-19 Coronavirus UK and World News Weekend Update 9th and 10th October 2021
There are no new cases or losses of life for Wales today, because they accidentally added the whole weekend's new cases and losses of life to Friday's numbers, but too late for it to be reported - which really makes a farce of the whole thing.
UK Random Daily Statistics:
Cases: 8,154,306 (+34,574)
In Hospital on Thursday 7th: 6,763
Using A Ventilator on Thursday 7th: 808
Losses of Life: 137,735 (+38)
Tests: 962,225
Vaccinations 1st Dose: 49,158,835 (85.5% of UK Population aged 12+)
Vaccinations 2 Doses: 45,168,344 (78.5%)
Rep. Of Ireland: 401,773 cases and 5,280 losses of life
World: 238,538,845 reported cases and 4,865,522 losses of life
"There has been no update to data from Wales today.
Cases and deaths within 28 days of positive test that would normally have been reported today were included in the update on Friday 8 October 2021, which was delayed because of network issues at Public Health Wales."
Wait, wait, what? You really typed that on the Government website? So, the 'daily stats' are at least 3 days out of date. Great, I can't wait to find out how many new cases we had last Friday.
To be fair we did always know the Government were a day or two ahead, but I wish they'd stop treating us like babies. Just give us the real figures each day. Go on.... if you can do it by accident, you can manage it by trying...
The Welsh 'interactive dashboard' hasn't been updated since 4th October.
Boris Johnson is off on his jollybobbs for a week at a luxury villa in Marbella. Parliament finished their 10 week Summer holidays a whole month ago, and the karaoke at the conference week was exhausting, so they have another week to get over it. Thankfully there's nothing much political happening in the UK right now, so it's not like we need a Prime Minister who goes to work.... oh, hang on... Insulate Britain, gas prices, electricity shortages, food supply chain issues, water shortages, fuel crisis, ambulance response times, massive row with France, NHS staffing... almost a full house Boris...
In case you don't understand what Insulate Britain are after - they want to literally insulate every single home in Britain. My Winter gas bill halved when we had wall insulation put in, and that saving on wasted power will really help reduce emissions too, so in itself you can't deny it's a fantastic idea.
They have been blocking London's transport network every day for a while now, and have given Boris a 10 day warning that they'll "unleash hell" if the Government don't agree to the insulation. He's not bothered. He's on a private beach with a margarita...
I mentioned it on Friday, and Dr Jenny Harries, Chief Executive of the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), is now reminding us that catching COVID and flu at the same time doubles your chance of the worst outcome. It's a heck of a lot for your body to fight at once.
Get your jabs when you are offered - and stay home and be kind to yourself if you are ill.
Dr Jenny Harries was also on telly this morning saying that masks in schools are not "at the top of my list of measures". Yeah, we noticed. I have to say this is not the same view as everyone in the world...
- The World Health Organisation and UNICEF recommend masks for children 12 and over in the same situations as adults (with 30k new cases a day, yes, this definitely would count in UK schools), and they recommend them for age 6-11 when someone is at high risk, or in high risk situations.
- The European CDC agree with WHO guidelines above, and state:
"In areas with community transmission of COVID-19, wearing a medical or non-medical face mask is recommended in confined public spaces and can be considered in crowded outdoor settings."
- The US CDC go further:
"Indoors: CDC recommends indoor masking for all individuals age 2 years and older, including students, teachers, staff, and visitors, regardless of vaccination status.
Outdoors: In general, people do not need to wear masks when outdoors."
- Canada say never for kids under 2, but children aged 5 or over wear them whenever recommended - they are currently recommended in several Canadian provinces.
You get the picture...
Jenny Harries also made some comments about the threat from COVID being potentially smaller than the threat from flu. Now... that's a very arguable statement isn't it Jenny.
She backed it up by explaining we usually lose an average 11,000 people to flu, and some modellers suggest we could lose up to 60,000 people this year.
Firstly, the modellers have messed it up quite spectacularly this year, they aren't getting it right, so prepare, but it hasn't happened yet. Secondly, we have lost over 100 people to COVID EVERY DAY for the last 3 months, and the modellers still expect that to rise too, so which is going to go up the most? Thirdly, they forget we care about our own health. The basics which help prevent you catching flu will also help with COVID. Even without restrictions, we didn't all rush out to kiss door handles - we may well continue to be sensible, limit our interactions, wash our hands, open the windows, especially if we personally know of lots of people who are poorly.
We need to take both COVID and flu seriously, and encourage EVERYONE to stay home if you are ill. Whether it's COVID or not, if you are having a rough time, don't pass that on.
Not COVID, but relevant to a lot of you - British Telecom (BT) have proposed a new telephone line and app. for people to use when walking home alone. It would work something like this - start the app. and say where you're going. GPS tracks your phone and calls you if you didn't arrive home at the expected time (and it would learn how long it took you to walk usual routes). If you don't answer, or there's a problem, the police are called - and there's also a panic button on the app.
Home Secretary Priti Patel has backed it and is in discussions.
It doesn't address the cause of these crimes, but since humans first evolved no-one has solved that problem yet. If it just saves one person from a physical assault, it'll be worth doing.
The US CDC have picked up on a booster vaccination side effect that they didn't see as often with 1st and 2nd doses. After receiving their boosters, more people are reporting swollen lymph nodes in their armpits.
This is natural and not anything particularly unusual when your body is facing a virus (or thinks it is). Usually swelling goes down by itself within a couple of weeks - but see your GP if you are having fevers or become very unwell, as having a vaccination for COVID doesn't switch off your ability to become ill in plenty of other ways.
Not COVID again, but telly wildlife bloke and publicly Autistic hero to many kids and grown ups, Chris Packham, has been a victim of arson - because of his attempts to get hunting banned on National trust land. If you are a National Trust member, you have 2 weeks left to vote - please do it. (Link here - https://secure.cesvotes.com/V3-1-0/nt21/en/login?bbp=30978&x=-1)
It is World Mental Health Day. Over 7,898,893,000 people have spent the last year and a half worrying about exactly the same thing. Being part of a huge crowd means you are never alone, but that doesn't mean you won't ever feel lonely. COVID restrictions have made this a very lonely time for millions of people. Send someone a message and check they're okay, and if you aren't okay, reach out and tell someone. There's ALWAYS someone to talk to, and someone who understands. Don't be on your own.
- Check out Facebook support groups
- Google online support for people like you
- Contact your council for local interest groups and support networks
- Contact your GP if you are struggling
- Ring the Samaritans on 116 123, or text SHOUT to 85258 if you need immediate support
- If a life is in danger, always ring 999.
Be. Kind. To. Yourself.
Some numbers. They are ALL people, and they ALL matter:
Countries / Cases / Losses of life (since midnight GMT. In larger countries, such as the USA and India, some states /provinces have yet to report today):
UK 8,154,306 (+34,574) 137,735 (+38)
Russia 7,775,365 (+28,647) 216,415 (+962)
India 33,971,078 (+18,803) 450,807 (+186)
Philippines 2,666,562 (+12,159) 39,624 (+119)
Ukraine 2,541,257 (+11,344) 58,493 (+162)
Iran 5,702,890 (+11,256) 122,592 (+222)
Thailand 1,710,884 (+10,817) 17,691 (+84)
Romania 1,356,640 (+10,400) 39,420 (+211)
Mexico 3,720,545 (+6,153) 281,958 (+348)
USA 45,184,449 (+5,240) 733,068 (+10)
Serbia 1,005,168 (+4,803) 8,737 (+54)
France 7,056,511 (+3,991) 117,052 (+8)
Cuba 918,383 (+3,604) 7,851 (+39)
Vietnam 839,662 (+3,528) 20,555 (+113)
.
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Sources:
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/
https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations
https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-schools-masks-safety-plans-update-1.6196198
https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/2019-novel-coronavirus-infection/prevention-risks/about-non-medical-masks-face-coverings.html
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/schools-childcare/k-12-guidance.html
https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-children-and-masks-related-to-covid-19
https://twitter.com/BBCPolitics/status/1447161700181020672?t=kOIA4qNMYkob9TW-t5ah_w&s=19
https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/wr/mm7039e4.htm
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/swollen-glands/
https://twitter.com/i/events/1446776567657426947?t=z4hP9ZeZjANLQExhsS4-OA&s=09
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/10/10/covid-may-no-longer-significant-threat-health-dr-jenny-harries/
https://twitter.com/10DowningStreet/status/1447113619305639939?t=m6DrmqFbRN71ef1jm6tUrQ&s=19
https://twitter.com/10DowningStreet/status/1447183211986030592?t=s33__GYCJfwebd2ajZq7sQ&s=19
https://twitter.com/ChrisGPackham/status/1446932226839564374?t=6WmHO_RARIzP_xeEzgyGQQ&s=19
National Trust Hunting Ban Voting Page:
https://secure.cesvotes.com/V3-1-0/nt21/en/login?bbp=30978&x=-1
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