6.34 Million People Flock to US Airports Ahead of Christmas... Will the Thanksgiving Nightmare Repeat?

1.2 Million Passengers on the 23rd... Thanksgiving Travel Record Broken
85 Million Expected to Travel by Car During Year-End Holidays
Health Authorities Urge "Avoid Travel and Stay Home"

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] Ahead of the Christmas holiday, the number of travelers passing through airports in the United States reached the highest level since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). U.S. health authorities are warning that the rapid spread seen immediately after the Thanksgiving holiday could recur.

According to CNN, on the 24th (local time), the U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced that 1,191,123 people passed through airport security checkpoints across the country the previous day. This is the highest number of daily airport users since the COVID-19 outbreak began this year. The previous record was 1,176,091 on Sunday, November 29, right after Thanksgiving. The number of airport users had already exceeded one million on the 18th, a week before Christmas, and for the following six days, more than 900,000 to one million people used airports daily, bringing the cumulative number of travelers to approximately 6.34 million.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

The number of people traveling by car is estimated to be much higher. Earlier, the American Automobile Association (AAA) predicted that 85 million people would travel by car during the year-end and New Year holidays from the 23rd of this month to the 3rd of next month.

Although U.S. health authorities began administering the Pfizer vaccine on the 14th and the Moderna vaccine on the 21st, they said it will take a long time to achieve herd immunity through general public vaccination. They have appealed for people to refrain from traveling during the Christmas holidays and to stay home, but CNN pointed out that the public is ignoring these requests.

The United States surpassed 18 million cumulative confirmed COVID-19 cases due to travel and gatherings during Thanksgiving at the end of last month. It is anticipated that travel and gatherings during this Christmas and year-end holiday season will cause another wave of repercussions. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, urged, "We must minimize Christmas travel and avoid indoor gatherings," adding, "Until vaccines have a positive impact on COVID-19 control, we all must adhere to public health guidelines."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.