New Delhi: The novel coronavirus pandemic continues to devastate countries across the world — the latest count being above 28 lakh cases and more than 9 lakh deaths.
New Zealand is struggling with a mental health crisis, while nurses in Venezuela face a high risk of contracting the virus because of shortage of protective gear and water. Plus ship crews have been trapped by the pandemic.
ThePrint brings you the most important global stories on the coronavirus pandemic and why they matter.
New Zealand struggling with mental health crisis
Health workers across New Zealand reveal that citizens are experiencing more depression and anxiety since the inception of the coronavirus lockdown, reports The Guardian.
“GPs working on the front line say ‘generalised anxiety’ is proliferating in the community, and putting a strain on mental health services that are already overburdened,” says the report.
So far, New Zealand has recorded 1,792 Covid-19 cases and 24 deaths.
Nurses in Venezuela struggle to fight virus
Nurses in Venezuela face a high risk of contracting the virus owing to shortage of gear and clean water, reports Al Jazeera.
“Between March and the start of September, at least 26 nurses died of Covid-19, according to non-profit group Doctors United Venezuela. The nurses’ association said that at least 4,000 have emigrated since 2016 due to the economic crisis,” says the report.
“The hospital system has been in continuous decay for years due to chronic water shortages, constant blackouts and loss of medical personnel because of low wages,” it adds.
The country has recorded 56,751 cases of Covid-19 and 452 deaths.
Also read: Singapore’s 3 lakh poor migrant workers are still locked up while others move freely
Peru opposition attempts to oust economy minister over Covid response
Opposition lawmakers in Peru on Wednesday filed a censure motion to oust the economy minister as the country “rides out its deepest economic plunge” in decades owing to the pandemic, reports Reuters.
“The economy, which tumbled 30% in the second quarter of the year, is expected to contract 12% this year, the government said in August, after most operations ground to a halt in March,” said the report.
Peru has recorded 7,02,776 cases of Covid-19 and 30,236 deaths so far.
UK citizens directed to distant testing centres
People across the United Kingdom are being asked to get tested at centres that are far away, even in different counties, due to a lack of availability in nearby areas, reports The Independent.
“There have also been complaints after people were directed to test centres more than 100 miles away in recent days and weeks. Helen Hays, Labour MP for Dulwich and West Norwood, shared an example from one of her constituents who had been directed 356 miles away to a testing centre in St Andrews,” says the report.
The UK has reported 3,55,219 cases of Covid-19 and 41,594 deaths.
Also read: Why big pharma needs to do more to counter Covid vaccine politics
Hong Kong travel agencies urge govt to speed up ‘travel bubble’ plans
Travel agencies in Hong Kong urged the government to speed up travel bubbles, which will allow citizens to travel across countries for business or tourism without having to quarantine, reports Asia Times.
“Players in the tourism industry say they have prepared for a possible relaxation of travel restrictions and hope that outbound trips could restart before the high season in Christmas,” says the report.
Hong Kong has recorded 4,902 cases of Covid-19 and 99 deaths.
Ship crews trapped by pandemic
When the coronavirus pandemic forced borders to shut down, seafarers on ships couldn’t find a way to get back home. A few months down the line, there is still no “solution in sight”, reports The New York Times.
“Last month, the International Transport Workers’ Federation, a seafarers’ union, estimated that 3,00,000 of the 1.2 million crew members at sea were essentially stranded on their ships, working part the expiration of their original contracts and fighting isolation, uncertainty and fatigue,” explains the report.
8,000 jumbo jets needed to deliver Covid vaccines worldwide
The International Air Transport Association has revealed that shipping a Covid-19 vaccine across the world will become the “largest transport challenge ever”, reports the BBC.
Even as the race for a Covid vaccine continues, IATA is working on the logistics of transporting it across the world.
“Not all planes are suitable for delivering vaccines as they need a typical temperature range of between 2 and 8C for transporting drugs. Some vaccines may require frozen temperatures which would exclude more aircraft,” says the report.
What else we are reading
Trump admits downplaying the virus knowing it was ‘deadly stuff’: The New York Times
Is the coronavirus pandemic a chance to tackle climate change?: Al Jazeera
Also read: Japan reinvents concerts, UK’s hefty pandemic bill and other global Covid news
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