Delta variant’s rapid spread hits America’s tourism, businesses

Medical personnel wait to conduct Covid-19 tests in Miami, on Wednesday. Pic/AFP

As the United States (US) is surpassing an average of 160,000 new Covid-19 cases a day, the spread of the more transmissible Delta variant and the return of many students to the classroom for a new academic year seriously concern officials and health experts.

The pandemic is not only stretching hospitals thin with the surge of patients, particularly unvaccinated people and children, but also wearing the country out in the fields of tourism, tech businesses and social welfare, Xinhua news agency reported on Thursday.

More US kids were hospitalised with Covid-19 in August than any other time this past year - proving how seriously the Delta variant can hit any age group, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Between August 20 and 26, an average of 330 children were admitted to hospitals every day with Covid, it said.

That's the highest rate of new Covid hospitalisations among children in more than a year - a record that was broken several times in August, according to CDC data. CNN on Tuesday quoted doctors as saying that it's crucial to protect children against the Delta variant, not just for the sake of their health and to keep in-person learning, but also to help prevent more aggressive variants from setting the entire country back.

Oz records 1,477 cases in a day

Australia has reported another record number of 1,477 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday as the country continued to battle the raging third wave of the infections. The new cases took the overall infection tally to 56,212, while the death toll stood at 1,012, reports Xinhua news agency.

Lockdown to end in Kathmandu Valley

Authorities in Nepal's Kathmandu Valley have decided to end the lockdown imposed since late April in the wake of the second wave of the pandemic, although certain restrictions will still remain. "In recent days, the number of Covid cases has come down significantly," Kali Prasad Parajuli, chief district officer of Kathmandu district told Xinhua news agency on Wednesday.

5,27,942
No. of new cases reported globally in the past 24 hours

21,86,66,689
Total no. of cases worldwide

45,46,775
Total no. of deaths worldwide

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever