Germany:
Along with Berlin, Cologne, Frankfurt and Stuttgart, Munich has become the latest city to exceed Germany’s key coronavirus threshold. Cities on the list have re-imposed strict restrictions; gatherings in private and public spaces in Munich are subject to a 10-person limit, while events such as weddings and birthdays can have no more than 25 people in attendance. Curbs on alcohol consumption are also in place.
Australia:
The region of Victoria, Australia, which includes the city of Melbourne, has made it mandatory for all residents, with the exception of those with medical conditions and children under 12, to wear a mask. Effective today, the police in Victoria will fine those not wearing a fitted mask $200. The government is easing other restrictions, and to prevent a surge, they are implementing mandatory masks.
India:
India has crossed the 7 million mark of confirmed coronavirus cases. In the past 24 hours, The Health Ministry registered 74,383 new infections. It is on its way to beat the US for the most positive cases in a single country. Infections from the first wave continue to surge in the country.
Canada:
On Sunday, Canada reported 1,685 new cases of the coronavirus in addition to 5 deaths. Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public health officer, said that there was a sharp increase in cases over the last week. Thanksgiving celebrations may have been a factor for this steep increase. Quebec has seen the largest increase in new cases – 942 – which may be because they opened their economy faster than the rest of Canada, including schools where no masks are required. Now, many cities in Quebec are under code red, but provinces with less cases are completely open.
UK:
The UK government announced new restrictions to slow the spread of the coronavirus on September 22. Failure to abide by these restrictions will result in police and other enforcement officers issuing fines starting from £200 going to £10,000. These restrictions include only socialising with up to six people indoors, wearing a mask when using public transportation, and wearing a mask at restaurants except when eating or drinking. On Sunday, there were 12,872 new coronavirus cases in the UK, indicating a potential lockdown in the near future.
France:
On Saturday, France reported 26,896 new cases of the novel coronavirus, an all-time daily high for the country since the pandemic started. The health minister of France announced that the cities of Lyon, Lille, Grenoble and Saint-Etienne will have to close bars and restaurants, like Paris did in early October. Hospitals in Paris are now on emergency mode since more than half of intensive-care beds have been taken up by coronavirus patients.
South Korea:
Starting today, South Korea will be easing their coronavirus restrictions. This includes reopening night clubs and karaoke bars, but with strict SOPs such as wearing masks and keeping lists of all clients. The government is also allowing indoor gatherings of 50 people and outdoor gatherings of over 100 people. Additionally, the new guidelines include allowing sports stadiums to have a 30% stadium capacity. South Korea has averaged 59.4 new cases a day over the past two weeks.
