(Reuters) – Here’s what you need to know about the coronavirus right now:
More Australian cities lock down
Australia’s most populous state, New South Wales, reported a slight rise in COVID-19 infections on Tuesday as officials tightened curbs and pushed for vaccinations to contain flare-ups of the highly infectious Delta variant.
Australia is fighting the Delta strain in five of its eight states and territories, since the first case was found in Sydney two weeks ago.
Queensland is set to impose a snap three-day lockdown in capital Brisbane and some neighbouring regions from Tuesday evening. Perth, capital of Western Australia, began a four-day lockdown starting Tuesday, joining Sydney and Darwin.
Indonesian COVID surge nears ‘catastrophe’
Indonesia’s COVID-19 surge is on the edge of a “catastrophe” as the Delta variant dominates transmission and chokes hospitals in Southeast Asia’s worst epidemic, the Red Cross said.
Indonesia has reported record daily infections of more than 20,000 in recent days.
“Every day we are seeing this Delta variant driving Indonesia closer to the edge of a COVID-19 catastrophe,” said Jan Gelfand, head of the Indonesian delegation of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
Philippines extends curbs until mid-July
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte prolonged restrictions on movement and businesses in the capital and nearby provinces until mid-July and retained stricter curbs in central and southern areas, an official said on Tuesday.
Infections in the capital region, home to at least 13 million people, have dropped since peaking in April, but some provinces are battling spikes as the country scrambles to distribute vaccines.
Entertainment venues, amusement parks, and contacts sports are prohibited in the Manila region and nearby provinces, while restaurants, gyms and indoor tourist attractions are allowed to operate at up to 40% capacity.
India’s richest state gears up to protect children
India’s western state of Maharashtra is training thousands of health workers in how to care for children afflicted with COVID-19 as a first line of defence against surges involving new variants, health officials and experts said on Tuesday.
The state, home to the financial capital of Mumbai, was the worst hit by a second wave of infections in April and May that killed hundreds of thousands, and is still reporting a quarter of all new cases nationwide.
While there is no data showing children are more vulnerable, a government survey in Mumbai from April to mid-June showed the presence of virus antibodies in at least half of those under 18.
Share of Delta variant cases more than doubles in Germany
The share of cases caused by the Delta variant of the coronavirus more than doubled in Germany within a week and is likely to gain more traction over other variants, a senior health official was quoted as saying.
Lothar Wieler, president of the Robert Koch Institute public health agency, told officials during a meeting that a genome sequencing analysis had shown the Delta variant accounting for 36% of infections in the week of June 14-20, up from 15% the previous week, according to a senior official.
The Delta variant now represents some 20% of COVID-19 cases in France, Health Minister Olivier Veran told France Info radio, up from last week’s estimate 9-10% of cases.
(Compiled by Linda Noakes; Editing by Nick Macfie)
