Pandemic Year 2 'Cloudy'... Europe Sets Daily Records Amid Omicron Surge

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] Europe is breaking daily records due to the rapid spread of the Omicron variant. It has been exactly two years since COVID-19 was first reported as an unknown pneumonia in Wuhan, China, on December 31, 2019, but the pandemic still appears to be ongoing.

France announced on the 29th (local time) that the number of new confirmed cases reached 208,000. This is the highest record for two consecutive days and the largest scale recorded in Europe since the pandemic began.

Olivier V?ran, France's Minister of Health, said, "Two people are being confirmed positive every second," adding, "We will no longer call the Omicron variant a wave but a tsunami."

In the UK, 183,037 new cases were reported on the same day. This is nearly 1.5 times the previous record of 129,471 set just a day earlier. Daily deaths also tripled from 18 the previous day to 57.

In Italy, new cases approached 100,000, setting a record for the second consecutive day. The positivity rate, which indicates the percentage of positive cases among those tested, was 9.5%, meaning 1 out of every 10 people tested was confirmed positive.

The three countries experiencing a surge in cases due to the Omicron variant reported nearly 500,000 new cases in a single day. The New York Times (NYT) reported, "This week alone, the UK, Denmark, France, Greece, Italy, Spain, and Portugal have all set new records for the highest number of confirmed cases."

In Europe, the healthcare system has become paralyzed to the point where it is difficult to even get tested for COVID-19. In England and Northern Ireland, online PCR test appointments were fully booked, and test kits ran out on the same day.

A pharmacist in the UK told the NYT, "I get questions about lateral-flow tests every 2 to 5 minutes," adding, "We don't know when test kits will be restocked. The situation is completely out of control."

In Spain, where the number of confirmed cases neared 100,000 for the first time since the pandemic began, the contact tracing system has effectively collapsed. People are lining up in front of hospitals to get tested in order to receive sick leave due to COVID-19.

Portugal, which boasted a high vaccination rate in Europe, is seeing the number of new cases double every eight days. On the previous day, Portugal recorded 17,172 new cases, breaking the record for the first time in 11 months since late January (16,432 cases).

The German government estimates that the actual number of confirmed cases is 2 to 3 times higher than the official statistics. Health Minister Karl Lauterbach said, "Due to the Christmas holidays, the reported number of cases is significantly lower," adding, "The number of patients due to Omicron will increase significantly within weeks."

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