New York City recorded three more omicron cases, and states including Massachusetts reported their first infections as the coronavirus variant continued to be detected in the U.S.
Rio de Janeiro’s mayor said he’s canceling New Year’s Eve celebrations, the latest case of the variant putting a damper on the holiday season.
Five people in Sydney, Australia’s largest city, have contracted the omicron variant locally, New South Wales health authorities confirmed.
The U.K. will require all travelers to take a pre-flight Covid-19 test within 48 hours prior to travel — regardless of their vaccination status.
- Virus Tracker: Cases top 265.3 million; deaths pass 5.2 million
- Omicron mutations signal vaccine evasion, but similar symptoms
- Scientist who first sequenced omicron worried by speed of change
- Travel insurance may save peace of mind but not much money
- What we know about omicron: QuickTake
U.K. Reluctant to Require Jabs (8:41 a.m. London)
Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab, on Sky News, pushes back against mandatory vaccines but calls those who don’t get jabbed “irresponsible.”
Russia’s Latest Tally (8:30 a.m. London)
Russia reports 32,602 new Covid-19 Cases and 1,206 deaths in the past 24 hours. The numbers are consistent with trend on slow reduction of new cases and mortality records over the past several weeks.
Singapore Vaccines for Kids (3:11 p.m. HK)
Covid vaccines for children aged 5 to 11 will be available soon in Singapore, Finance Minister Lawrence Wong said in a Facebook post.
Omicron Spreads in U.S. (1:05 p.m. HK)
The omicron variant continues to spread in the U.S., with three more cases reported in New York City and one each in Massachusetts, Wisconsin and Connecticut on Saturday.
The new cases in New York, which bring the state’s total to eight, don’t appear to be connected to a large anime conference in Manhattan, where a Minnesota resident appears to have been infected, Governor Kathy Hochul said in a press release on Saturday.
Massachusetts reported a case in a fully vaccinated woman in her 20s who had traveled out of state, the Department of Public Health said in a statement. She “has experienced mild disease, and did not require hospitalization,” the department said.
Connecticut’s first confirmed case involves a man in his 60s whose family member had earlier traveled to New York City to attend the Anime NYC 2021 convention, Governor Ned Lamont said in a statement. The family member had taken an at-home Covid test that delivered a positive result. Both the family member, whose symptoms have resolved, and the man are fully vaccinated.
Covid Outbreak on Cruise Ship (10:25 a.m. HK)
Ten people tested positive for Covid-19 on a Norwegian Cruise Line ship due to disembark in New Orleans this weekend, the Louisiana Department of Health said on Twitter.
The Norwegian Breakaway had departed from New Orleans on Nov. 28 and stopped in Belize, Honduras and Mexico. It has more than 3,200 people on board.
Omicron Community Transmission in Australia (9:29 a.m. HK)
Five people in Sydney have contracted the omicron variant locally, New South Wales health authorities said.
The cases are linked to two schools and a climbing gym in Sydney’s western suburbs, which may also be the source of a confirmed omicron infection in the Australian Capital Territory, NSW Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant said Sunday. Urgent genome testing is under way for a number of other cases linked to the venues and should be available in coming days, she said in a video update.
New South Wales state has confirmed 15 omicron infections and more are likely, Chant said. The outbreak was seeded from infected travelers on a flight from Doha who had been in southern Africa.
Separately, Australia will begin vaccinating young children early next year once authorities receive final approvals in the coming weeks.
Ex-Dutch Queen Tests Positive (4:03 p.m. NY)
Princess Beatrix, the former Dutch queen, has tested positive for Covid-19 with “mild cold symptoms,” the Royal House of the Netherlands said in a statement. Beatrix, 83, who abdicated in 2013, is recovering in isolation at home.
Romania and Chile Report Omicron Infections (3:24 p.m. NY)
The Romanian Health Ministry said two recent travelers to South Africa tested positive for the variant. Neither person is symptomatic.
Chile’s first case was a foreign resident who had traveled recently from Ghana, the Valparaiso regional secretariat of the Ministry said in a statement on Twitter. The patient had received two doses of the Pfizer vaccine.
Health authorities in Chile will test other passengers seated near the first patient on his flight. A close contact of the patient has been quarantined with family.
Europeans Protest Tightening Curbs (2:45 p.m. NY)
Protests broke out in several European cities against tightening Covid-19 rules, including 40,000 people who gathered in Vienna despite a nationwide lockdown, according to a police estimate.
In the Dutch city of Utrecht, marchers protested a partial lockdown, in which most public venues must close at 5 p.m., the Associated Press reported. Violent clashes broke out two weeks ago in Covid-related protests in Rotterdam.
About 30 protesters carrying torches demonstrated Friday night at the regional health minister’s home in the eastern German state of Saxony, prompting condemnation and comparisons to the Nazi era by her Social Democratic Party, the DPA newswire reported.
U.K. Requires Pre-Arrival Tests (2:09 p.m. NY)
The U.K. will require all travelers to take a pre-flight Covid-19 test within 48 hours prior to their flight — regardless of their vaccination status — as the government seeks to stem the spread of the omicron variant, Health Secretary Sajid Javid told Sky News.
The measure will be temporary and be reviewed as the omicron outbreak develops, he said. More than 100 people in the U.K. have been identified with the new variant, which is rapidly spreading across the globe.
The new rules go into effect on Dec. 7.