In an effort to the sudden spread of the highly transmissible new strain of the Covid-19 virus, the United Kingdom has announced a lockdown on Monday in London and parts of Southeast England. The lockdown is said to continue till mid-February. The decision has been reached after a lot of meetings with scientific advisory panels and other officials.
The panel recommended the lockdown to start before Christmas, including the shutting down of educational institutions. Statistics show that as of January 4, the U.k. has reported 2.7 million cases. More than 50,000 new cases have been reported on a daily basis since December 29, 2020. On January 4, the highest number of cases, 59,000 were reported with the death of 400 daily. On Monday, more than 26,000 patients were already admitted to hospitals, which is about 30% more than the previous week.
The dangers of the new mutation of the new coronavirus strain
Even though the reports have claimed that the new strain has no increased mortality or severity, a sudden surge in the cases has only proved how fast it can transmit. The spread is said to be under control if the rate of reproduction of the virus is less than 1. the current strain of the virus has a reproduction rate of 1.5-1.7, hence we can only imagine how difficult it will be to control the virus. During analysis, nearly 44,500 samples were collected and the new variant emerged in many locations.
Precautions that are being taken worldwide to contain this new strain
There is evidence across the globe that lockdown had been successful in containing the virus before., suggesting that lockdown is the only known precaution that can be taken to contain the virus. Not only the U. K., but all other countries have also taken steps to control the spread of the virus. Flights to and from the country have been halted, people are being examined thoroughly everywhere before allowing them to enter a country after international travel.
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The lockdown has ensured that schools and other educational institutes remain closed. Scientists are optimistic that if the lockdown is stricter and people comply with the rules better, the country can tackle the new wave of covid.