ALL PRIMARY SCHOOLS and kindergartens in Hong Kong will close from Friday onwards in a bid to stop a widespread outbreak. This follows the discovery of five local cases.
This contrasts dramatically with responses elsewhere. In New York there are 30,000 cases and 37 deaths every day: and schools are staying open.
The UK Guardian’s correspondent in New York was distraught this morning because his daughter’s Covid-positive teacher has been asymptomatic for several days so is being brought back to work.
“Yes, we’re literally forcing Covid positive teachers into class,” he just wrote on Twitter. “This is nuts.”
Some politicians are using the relative mildness of Omicron to urge that restrictions should be dropped to see if that leads to a positive outcome. But most scientific bodies are warning that Omicron is potentially more dangerous than Delta.
“Remember, a ‘mild but faster’ virus will most of the time kill and maim more people than a virus that is slower and more severe,” said US public health expert, Dr Eric Feigl-Ding. “Those who call Omicron ‘nature’s vaccine’ need to be held accountable for public endangerment.”
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Image at the top is by Samuel Chan/ Unsplash