Christmas Comfort Over COVID Vaccines Collides With New Curbs

Coronavirus vaccine approvals and rollouts have brought comfort and joy to many this Christmas but failed to halt new curbs on travel and family gatherings as COVID-19 cases rise worldwide.

More than 73.68 million people have been reported to be infected by the coronavirus globally and 1,655,424​ have died, according to a Reuters tally, with the United States leading the way in the number of deaths and infections.

A fast-spreading U.S. surge is pushing hospitals to the brink, weeks after millions took to the air and roads for the Thanksgiving holiday, with admissions rising to record heights for a 19th straight day.

Now many countries are preparing for the Christmas rush, with travel plans for thousands of Australians thrown into chaos when states and territories imposed border restrictions after 28 COVID-19 cases were detected in Sydney.

Large areas of England will be added to the “very high alert” COVID-19 tier category this weekend, placing residents under the most stringent curbs even as the government tries to defend a plan to relax curbs for five days over Christmas.

“It doesn’t look like the tier system is holding the epidemic wave back, unfortunately” John Edmunds, a member of the government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, told Sky News.

“I think we are going to have to look at these measures and perhaps tighten them up.”

South Korea, praised worldwide for its handling of the pandemic in its early stages, reported 1,062 new cases on Friday, its second-highest ever daily tally, as the government agonised over tighter restrictions.

Austrians abroad were heading home early for Christmas ahead of new quarantine rules coming in on Saturday. The country is going into a third lockdown after Christmas, the national news agency APA reported on Friday.

‘NO SAFE PLACE’

Swiss Health Minister Alain Berset will ask cabinet colleagues on Friday to close restaurants for a month, two newspapers reported.