Date Published: 05/03/2021
ARCHIVED - Coronavirus cases in Spain keep falling but cases rise again in other parts of Europe
ARCHIVED ARTICLE
This week the WHO has reported a 9 per cent increase in daily cases again
On Friday March 5 Spain reported 6,654 new cases within the last 24 hour period and the 14 day accumulated rate fell below 150 to 149.2 cases per 100,000.
As the number of new cases continues to fall in Spain, albeit at a slower rate than a few days ago, the country is keeping a wary eye on the rest of the continent, where infections are on the up in 19 of the 27 EU member states.
Following six weeks of decreasing infection rates almost all over the continent, the tables have turned again in Europe according to the latest report from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain are the only countries with stable or downward trends, the data reveals. Moreover, nine countries are reporting increases in hospitalizations and ICU occupation rates, and death rates are rising in another five.
The WHO has also reported a 9 per cent increase in daily cases in the last week, with figures rising to more than a million again. “We’re seeing a resurgence in Central and Eastern Europe. New cases are also on the rise in several Western countries, where rates were already high," said Hans Kluge, WHO’s regional director for Europe. He called for increased monitoring and faster vaccination to control the virus and the spread of the newer variants across the continent.
The situation is desperate in the Czech Republic, which has declared another state of emergency until 28 March as hospitals are filled to brimming due to the fast spread of the British variant, causing the country to ask its neighbours for help.
Hungary has closed schools for a month and non-essential businesses for two weeks, as its government believes the country is entering its worst fortnight yet of the pandemic.
Closer to home, Italy has put back its municipal elections as cases are on the rise and announced new confinements, and France has announced new restrictions in an attempt to slow the spread of the British variant, which now accounts for 60 per cent of all new cases in the country.
Belgium has today prolonged its ban on non-essential journeys until April 18th, Bulgaria has today cancelled all hospital operations as cases surge, and the UK has announced fines for anyone leaving the country without authorisation.
Meanwhile, in Spain and Portugal new case numbers are falling, although at a more conservative rate than they had been. This could be due to the fact that the two were the last countries to reach the peak of the last wave of the virus, a few weeks behind most of their European counterparts.
Image 2: Evolution of cases in Spain showing the recent dramatic fall in new diagnoses
Although the situation has improved considerably in Spain when compared to a month ago, and today the country emerged from the “high risk” classification with its accumulated incidence rate dropping to 149 cases per 100,000 of population, the Health Ministry has warned against complacency as the figures are still considerably higher than the level recommended by the WHO to bring the virus under control, which is 50 cases per 100,000. Indeed, this week, the regional governments have agreed that many restrictions will be left in place over the Easter holidays, and mobility between regions prevented in order to try and avoid a repeat of the disastrous third wave which followed the relaxation of safety measures at Christmas.
Although the situation at the moment is better, the 7-day accumulated incidence rate has increased slightly today by one third of a per cent, but although this is a minimal rise which ends a run of 38 consecutive days of falls, it is still a rise, and comes at a time when restrictions are being relaxed, bars and restaurants opened and in spite of all the warnings and bans, when Women’s Day activities and marches will take place regardless of the calls for rational restraint to avoid a fourth wave.