The unvaccinated remain at a much higher risk of infection, hospitalization, and even death from COVID-19.
COVID-19’s current crisis appears to be mirroring the projections made by officials and health experts that cases in New York are beginning to dip as sharply as they rose around Christmas, local media reported on Sunday.
New York City Health Department data has shown “very high transmission” of COVID-19 across the city, with thousands of new cases being detected every day, according to amNY.com, a leading news site in New York City. However, COVID-19-related infections and hospitalizations have begun to decline, signaling that the five boroughs of the city have passed the peak of the pandemic’s biggest wave. Progress has been seen in the 7-day positivity rates across the five boroughs. Fifty-two areas reported 30 percent or higher COVID-19 positivity between Jan. 5 and 11, but no area of the city has rates exceeding 40 percent. During the previous week from Dec. 29 to Jan. 4, the city had 23 areas with 40 percent or higher positivity rates.
People walk past a COVID-19 testing site in Times Square in New York, the United States, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Michael Nagle/Xinhua)
On Jan. 14, the citywide 7-day positivity rate was 27.65 percent, compared to 32.59 percent on Jan. 4.
Currently, the only rate that hasn’t fallen is the death rate, which has continued to rise due to long-term and more severe COVID-19 infections reported in recent days. As of Jan. 14, the average 7-day death rate was 73, according to amNY.com.
The unvaccinated remain at a much higher risk of infection, hospitalization, and even death from COVID-19. Health department data shows that unvaccinated New Yorkers are four times as likely to contract COVID-19, eight times as likely to be hospitalized from it, and nine times as likely to die from it than vaccinated New Yorkers, it noted.
The recent surge in COVID-19 cases at ICE detention sites came amid the rapid nationwide spread of the Omicron variant, which has been found to be more transmissible than other strains of the virus.
NEW YORK, – The number of coronavirus infections among immigrants detained at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centers has surged by 520 percent since the start of 2022.
On Thursday, 1,766 immigrants were being monitored or isolated at ICE detention facilities due to confirmed coronavirus infections, a more than sixfold jump from Jan. 3, when there were 285 active cases, CBS News reported, citing government statistics.
The number of detainees with active COVID-19 cases represents 8 percent of the 22,000 immigrants ICE is currently holding in its network of 200 detention centers, county jails and for-profit prisons, according to the report.
Since the outset of the pandemic, more than 32,000 immigrants have tested positive for the coronavirus while in ICE custody, and ICE has so far reported 11 coronavirus-related deaths of detainees, it added.
The recent surge in COVID-19 cases at ICE detention sites came amid the rapid nationwide spread of the Omicron variant, which has been found to be more transmissible than other strains of the virus.
An anonymous senior ICE official defended the agency’s pandemic response, noting that it expected an increase in infections due to the Omicron variant, and requires immigrants to undergo testing and a 14-day quarantine upon entering a detention facility.
In a statement released on Friday, ICE said the coronavirus positivity rate in some of its detention facilities “is lower — in some spots significantly lower — than the local community because of the stringent testing and quarantine protocols in place.”
Beijing, where the Winter Olympics starts in three weeks, has reported its first locally transmitted cases of Omicron, according to state media.
City officials said the first Omicron variant infection was found in a woman from Haidian district in the north of the capital on Saturday. Since then at least six more cases of the super-infectious Covid-19 variant have been discovered in the capital.
The woman had not left the city in the previous two weeks or had contact with a positive case. Two people she lived with tested negative. Health workers collected 2,430 samples from people linked to her residence and workplace.
The Omicron discovery could threaten the opening ceremony of the Winter Games scheduled for February 4, as China has a strict zero-Covid policy.
The first Omicron case in mainland China was found on December 9 in Tianjin city, 130 kilometres southeast of Beijing. The infection was discovered in an asymptotic overseas returnee.
Local authorities in China have warned residents against non-essential travel during the Lunar New Year holiday, which starts on February 1. Hundreds of millions of Chinese usually travel during the annual break. This year, traveller are require a negative test taken within 48 hours of their journey.
The explosion of an underwater volcano near the Pacific nation of Tonga on Saturday sent tsunami waves crashing to the shore in many countries.
The eruption also cut the internet to Tonga, leaving people anxiously trying to get in touch with their families and friends on Sunday.
Satellite images showed a huge plume of ash, steam and gas rising like a mushroom above the blue water of the Pacific, with a sonic boom that could be heard as far away as Alaska.
Tsunami advisories were issued for Japan, Hawaii, Alaska and the US Pacific coast, with the US Geological Survey estimating the eruption caused a 5.8 magnitude earthquake.
Tsunami in Japan
The Japan Meteorological Agency, meanwhile, issued a tsunami warning on Sunday for the southwestern islands of Amami and Tokara. The maximum height of the tsunami, unleashed by the eruption, is forecast to reach 3m in the Amami and Tokara chains, Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan.
A tsunami advisory was issued for the northernmost prefecture of Hokkaido to Kagoshima, as well as for Okinawa Prefecture, southernmost Japan, and the Izu and Ogasawara chains in the Pacific.
In the Kominato district on the Kagoshima island of Amami Oshima, a 1.2m tsunami was observed at 11.55pm on Saturday.
Later, a 90cm tsunami was observed in Kuji, Iwate Prefecture, northeastern Japan, and in Tosashimizu, Kochi Prefecture, western Japan.
On Sunday, a liaison office was set up at the crisis management centre of the prime minister’s office.
Tsunami waves may have been magnified due to changes in atmospheric pressure in wide areas caused by the eruption, according to the agency.
Tonga cut off
The Tonga Meteorological Services said a tsunami warning had been declared for the entire archipelago, and data from the Pacific tsunami centre said waves of 80 centimetres were detected.
Rachel Afeaki-Taumoepeau, chair of the New Zealand Tonga Business Council, said she hoped people managed to get to safety in time and said she was worried about those living on islands closest to the volcano. She said on Sunday that she was still not able to contact her friends and family in Tonga.
“We are praying that the damage is just to infrastructure and people were able to get to higher land,” she said.
Meanwhile, the New Zealand military said it was monitoring the situation and was on standby, ready to assist if asked.
In Tonga, home to some 105,000 people, a clip posted on social media showed large waves washing ashore and swirling around homes, a church and other buildings.
A convoy of police and military troops also evacuated Tonga’s King Tupou VI from his palace near the shore.
Rumbles as far away as Hawaii, California
In Hawaii, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre reported half-metre high waves in Nawiliwili, Kauai and 80cm high in Hanalei.
Residents in Hawaii, Alaska and along the US Pacific coast were advised to move to higher ground and pay attention to updates.
“We don’t issue an advisory for this length of coastline, but this really isn’t an everyday experience,” said Dave Snider, tsunami warning coordinator for the National Tsunami Warning Centre in Alaska.
Savannah Peterson watched in shock as the water rose several feet in a matter of minutes in front of her oceanfront house in Pacifica, California, just south of San Francisco. “It came up so fast, and a few minutes after that it was down again. It was nuts to see that happen so quickly,” she said. “I’ve never had water come all the way up to my front door, and today it did.”
Police also rescued a surfer whose surfboard broke in powerful waves off San Francisco.
Farther south in Santa Cruz, California, officials were taking stock of the damage after a surge damaged boats and inundated low-lying streets and parking lots, sending cars afloat. In Southern California, surging waters sunk at least one boat in Ventura Harbor northwest of Los Angeles.
“We are relieved that there is no reported damage and only minor flooding throughout the islands,” the tsunami centre said, describing the situation in Hawaii. The tsunami advisory for the islands was lifted about 11 hours after the eruption more than 4,828km away.
The first waves to hit the continental United States measured about 33cm in Nikolski, Alaska, and 59cm in Adak, Alaska. A wave of about 79cm was seen in Monterey, California, according to the US National Tsunami Warning Centre.
On California’s central coast, the National Weather Service reported tsunami waves up to 1.2 metres and flooding in beach parking lots at Port San Luis. About 320km down the coast, the waves were much smaller at Southern California’s Seal Beach.
Though experienced surfers would consider the waves reaching the West Coast barely high enough to qualify as swells, the National Weather Service warned that tsunamis cause deceptive water surges powerful enough to pull people out to sea.
Tracking the Hunga-Tonga volcano eruption • The volcano under the Pacific Ocean erupts on Friday, sending a 5km-wide plume of ash about 20km into the air. • Tonga issues a tsunami warning. • Tonga geologists near the volcano observe explosions and a massive plume of ash. • On Saturday, a significantly larger eruption occurs at about 5pm local time in Tonga. • The Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre in Wellington, New Zealand issues an advisory to airlines. • Ash from the eruption makes landfall on the main Tongan island of Tongatapu, blotting out the sun. • Loud explosions are heard 65km away in the Tongan capital of Nukuʻalofa with small pebbles and ash raining down from the sky. • About 15 minutes later, a 1.2-metre-high wave hits the shore of Nuku’alofa, followed by two more equally high waves. • King Tupou VI is evacuated and traffic comes to a near standstill as locals flee to higher ground. • The explosion is heard as far away as Samoa, roughly 840km away. • Tsunami waves measuring 0.61m hit American Samoa. • A 20cm high wave hits Fijian capital Suva at about 5.40pm local time. • Tsunami waves of 1 to 2.5 metres were observed in several islands in Vanuatu. • Sonic booms were heard in the North Island of New Zealand and as far away as the east coast of Australia. • The tsunami sinks several boats at a marina in Tutukaka, New Zealand. • Waves up to 0.8 metres high are recorded in Hanalei, Hawaii. • A wide column and shockwaves were captured propagating across the Pacific by satellites. • The US Geological Survey registers a 5.8-magnitude earthquake. • Preliminary observations show the eruption column ejected a large amount of volcanic material into the stratosphere, which may have a temporary effect on the climate. • A scientist from the University of Auckland describes this explosion as a one-in-1,000-year event. • Waves up to 0.8m high are recorded in Hanalei, Hawaii. • The highest tsunami waves of 1.27m are recorded at Australia’s Norfolk Island, 0.82m at the Gold Coast in Queensland and 0.77m at Twofold Bay in New South Wales. • In Kominato district of Amami-Oshima island, Japan’s Kagoshima prefecture, a 1.2m tsunami is reported at 11.55pm local time. • Waves 0.9m high hit Tosashimizu in Kōchi prefecture and Chichijima Futami. • On the Tohoku coast, a 0.7m wave strikes at just after midnight local time on Sunday. A tsunami measuring 0.9m hits Sendai Port at around midnight. • Tsunami waves hit Santa Cruz Harbour in California on Saturday morning. • Waves up to 0.37 metres in height are recorded in Nikolski, Alaska. • Waves 0.30m to 0.61m hit the Mexican states of Guerrero, Colima and Baja California, while a minor tsunami surge measuring 0.76m hits Port San Luis in California. • Restaurants and boats in Peru’s Lagunillas beach and San Andrés district are damaged by the tsunami. Beachgoers are evacuated, while shops suspend business. Piers and some homes are damaged in Lima. • In northern Chile, waves of up to 2m strike the coastline damaging piers, boats and hitting beaches. • Minor tsunamis related to the eruption are measured as far away as the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, a maximum rise of 0.18m in Puerto Rico.
The drill was aimed at checking the alert posture of the combatants of the regiment and bolstering their ability of discharging firepower mission, according to the KCNA report.
Afiring drill for checking and judging the proficiency in the action procedures of the railway-borne missile regiment of North Phyongan Province took place on Friday local time, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) reported early Saturday.
The drill was aimed at checking the alert posture of the combatants of the regiment and bolstering their ability of discharging firepower mission, according to the KCNA report.
It was supervised by commanding officers of the Korean People’s Army and leading officials of the Academy of Defence Science, the KCNA said.
The regiment received a firepower mission at short notice from the General Staff in the morning on Friday before swiftly moving to the firing ground, and precisely struck the set target in the East Sea of Korea with two tactical guided missiles, the KCNA reported.
Military officials discussed setting up a proper railway-borne missile operating system across the country and finding out ways for further completing the DPRK’s style of fighting methods with railway-borne missiles, according to the report.
The designer wants to “evoke nostalgia and a sense of multiculturalism” through the vibrant images.
Australia Post has issued a new set of stamps and coins, featuring playful images of tigers, to celebrate the upcoming Year of the Tiger.
The stamps, designed by award-winning artist and illustrator Chrissy Lau, are a testament to the adage that a picture is worth a thousand words.
The Year of the Tiger will fall on Feb. 1 this year.
For the second consecutive year, Lau, who is of Chinese heritage but grew up in northern England, has been commissioned by Australia Post to design the annual Chinese New Year stamps.
“The tigers are very active, courageous, persistent, (and) quite stubborn … I also look at the wider celebration of the Lunar New Year, and all the symbolism that comes with Chinese and Asian culture,” Lau told Xinhua.
Coins for the Year of Tiger are seen in a post office in Sydney, Australia, on Jan. 14, 2022. (Xinhua/Bai Xuefei)
The images of tigers resemble the “lucky cat” figurines that are commonly seen in Chinese and Japanese restaurants and Asian grocery stores in Australia.
Lau, who weaved in images full of symbolism in Asian cultures, told Xinhua that she wanted the vibrant images to “evoke nostalgia and a sense of multiculturalism.”
To that end, the tigers on the three stamps are holding in their upraised paws an array of traditional festive objects such as plum blossoms, firecrackers, lucky endless knots and a string of mandarins.
“There are quite playful elements in the design, but if you know about Asian culture, you’ll understand there are deeper meanings,” Lau said.
A coin and stamps for the Year of Tiger is seen in a post office in Sydney, Australia, on Jan. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Bai Xuefei)
The plum blossom, for example, can survive harsh coldness so it has come to represent perseverance throughout harsh times.
Ultimately, Lau hopes the eye-catching designs could inspire people to seek out the meaning behind the Asian iconography, such as the firecrackers which ward off evil spirits.
“If people see these designs, they don’t need to be Asian or Chinese to understand them, they just need to enjoy a nice picture and then they can find out more about the meaning,” she said.
“I hope the stamps make people smile and give them a sense of fun,” she said.
Tiger is the third zodiac sign in the Chinese zodiac cycle. The Chinese zodiac cycle contains 12 animals that record years and reflect people’s attributes: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog and pig.
“When all of that perfect storm nature of vulnerabilities that are unique to the U.S. combine, youve got an outbreak of the virus that can quickly lead from increased cases to increased hospitalizations, which tax the local hospitals and health community,” said Professor David Larsen.
Experts point to several reasons why the rate of COVID patients in hospital is higher in North America than in most other parts of the world, the BBC has reported.
Professor David Larsen, an epidemiologist and global health expert at Syracuse University in New York, told the BBC that the U.S. population is markedly different from that of both Europe and South Africa.
“We have an older population than South Africa. That’s a big one,” he said, adding that the U.S. population has an age structure similar to Europe but is less healthy than in Europe.
Dr Larsen noted that rates of hypertension and obesity — both of which are comorbidities that increase the risk of COVID — are higher in the United States than in most other countries.
Dr. Mark Cameron, an associate professor in the department of population and quantitative health sciences at Case Western University in Ohio, told the BBC that he believes the United States is suffering from “a perfect storm” of COVID-19 –comorbidities, uneven access to healthcare and hostility to vaccines, masks, and other preventative measures.
“When all of that ‘perfect storm’ nature of vulnerabilities that are unique to the U.S. combine, you’ve got an outbreak of the virus that can quickly lead from increased cases to increased hospitalizations, which tax the local hospitals and health community.”
The U.S. military and its civilian leaders are wrong to wage the “New Cold War” by overemphasizing militarized responses to economic and diplomatic challenges, The Diplomat magazine has reported.
Perhaps the key American misstep, the report said Wednesday, is relying too much on hyper-expensive legacy weapons — aircraft carriers, unusable and redundant nuclear missiles, over-budget and underperforming F-35 fighter jets — that can’t protect U.S. interests and citizens well.
Describing the current U.S. strategy and spending as “decidedly non-strategic,” the report said the “failing formula and counterintuitive calculus” can never change “until the corporate greed underpinning the defense budget is truly challenged” and replaced with more modest and practical spending.
Temperatures in the remote Western Australian town of Onslow hit 50.7 degrees Celsius on Thursday, matching a record set in the south of the country in 1962.
The Bureau of Meteorology confirmed that Onslow equalled the record at 2.26pm local time (5.26am Bangkok time).
This comes after Western Australia reported large bushfires last month, with one blaze near Margaret River scorching through more than 6,000 hectares of land, forcing evacuations.
The BBC weather forecaster said temperatures in Onslow are set to rise again on Friday but will cool down later.
The average temperature on Onslow at this time of the year is usually 36.5C, while two other towns, Mardie and Roeburne also reported temperatures of more than 50C on Thursday.
The Bureau of Meteorology put the rising temperatures down to a build-up of hot air caused by a lack of thunderstorms.
People have been advised to keep hydrated and stay indoors in air-conditioning or in the shade if they want to be outdoors.
The record-breaking temperatures come just days after the EU’s satellite system confirmed that the past seven years have been the hottest on record.
Heatwaves are becoming more extreme due to climate change. The world has warmed up by about 1.2C since the industrial era began, and temperatures will keep rising unless countries take serious action to cut emissions.
Novak Djokovic is facing deportation from Australia after authorities once again revoked his visa, just three days before the Serbian tennis ace was due to defend his Australian Open title.
Immigration Minister Alex Hawke on Friday cancelled Djokovic’s visa for a second time, arguing that the world’s top-ranked men’s tennis player posed a risk to Australia as he was unvaccinated for Covid-19.
The move came after an Australian court ruled on Monday that Djokovic’s visa was improperly cancelled by border authorities and he should be allowed to enter the country immediately. The tennis star had spent four days in Australian immigration detention fighting the case.
Australia’s immigration minister said on Friday that he exercised his power under the Migration Act to cancel Djokovic’s visa “on health and good order grounds, on the basis that it was in the public interest to do so”.
The government “is firmly committed to protecting Australia’s borders, particularly in relation to the Covid-19 pandemic,” he said in a statement.
Hawke said that his decision came after having “carefully considered” information from Djokovic, the Department of Home Affairs, and the Australian Border Force.
According to the Migration Act clause used to cancel the visa, Djokovic will not be able to secure a visa to enter Australia for the next three years, except in compelling circumstances that affect Australia’s interest, Al Jazeera reported.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison welcomed Djokovic’s pending deportation and commended his immigration minister’s decision.
“Australians have made many sacrifices during this pandemic, and they rightly expect the result of those sacrifices to be protected,” he said in a statement. “This is what the minister is doing in taking this action today.”
People walk past a COVID-19 testing site in Times Square in New York, the United States, Jan. 9, 2022. (Photo by Michael Nagle/Xinhua)
Coins for the Year of Tiger are seen in a post office in Sydney, Australia, on Jan. 14, 2022. (Xinhua/Bai Xuefei)
A coin and stamps for the Year of Tiger is seen in a post office in Sydney, Australia, on Jan. 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Bai Xuefei)
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