Hong Kong, Singapore Covid-19 Cases Live Updates: Coronavirus cases are rising sharply in Hong Kong and Singapore, with health officials warning of a new wave across Asia.
According to reports, the increase may be a reflexion of declining immunity.
Hong Kong, Singapore Covid 19 Cases News: In the year 2019, the world saw the emergence of one of the deadliest viral outbreaks in the history of mankind – SARS-Cov-2, causing COVID-19. First detected in China s Wuhan, the virus took the entire world in its grip within a few days – forcing the World Health Organisation (WHO) to declare it a pandemic. After battling the virus for over four years, the world finally began to see a significant decline in cases. However, after a brief period of relief, the deadly COVID-19 virus appears to be making a comeback.
As per the latest reports, several fresh cases of infection have been reported in the last few weeks, particularly in major Asian hubs like Hong Kong and Singapore. “The month of May has brought renewed concern, as both countries have recorded their highest surge in infection rates for the year so far, sparking fears of another potential wave,” officials told the local media.
Taking cognisance of the situation, the health authorities in Hong Kong and Singapore have issued a warning about a potential outbreak of a fresh COVID wave. In a press conference earlier this week Albert Au, the head of the Communicable Disease Branch of Hong Kong’s Center for Health Protection, noted the virus activity in the financial hub to be “quite high” Also, the report highlighted the highest spike in the number of respiratory samples testing positive for Covid in Hong Kong in a year.
According to official data, serious cases, including deaths due to COVID-19, jumped to 31 in the week that ended on May 3, which records it to be the highest in the year.
Despite the cases not being as high as in the previous two years, the report still noted certain reasons for the jump in the cases, the unchecked rise in the viral load found in sewage water, along with the spike in the number of people who are seeking medical consultations and hospitalisations due to COVID-19.
New COVID Wave Hits Singapore: What Is Causing The Current Surge?
Singapore, too, is dealing with a sudden surge in COVID cases and is on COVID alert. The rise can be noted in the fact that on May 3, the number of estimated COVID-19 cases rose by 28% to 14,200 as compared to the week before.
Singapore Health Ministry, underlining the reason, has said that the surge could be because of the weakened immunity of the people. The current variant is less threatening than the ones that were seen during the pandemic.
The COVID-19 outbreak isn’t new to anyone, considering the amount of mass harm it caused when it first came in 2019, hence the name, ‘COVID-19.’ The COVID-19 pandemic had grappling and devastating effects on the world, surrounded by lockdowns, sluggish economic growth and restrictive movements. Also known as the Wuhan virus, it caused an unprecedented loss of lives and mental trauma, the repercussions of which are still being felt.
Is India At Risk of Another Pandemic?
The initial cases of COVID-19 in India were reported on 30 January 2020 in three known towns of Kerala, among three Indian medical students who had returned from Wuhan, which was the epicentre of the pandemic.
What are the different variants of COVID-19 circulating currently?
The first variant that became known was the Alpha (B.1.1.7). It first made its presence in Great Britain in November 2020, and infections surged in December of that year. Whereas what caused severity in COVID-19 cases in India was the Delta (B.1.617.2) variant, which originated in India in late 2020; it quickly spread throughout the world, making itself the predominant version of the coronavirus until another variant, Omicron, emerged in its place in mid-December 2021.
The African variant Omicron was first identified in Botswana and South Africa in late November 2021. Later, its cases multiplied and began to spread to other parts of the world. The beta variant, or B.1.351, was first identified in South Africa at the end of 2020 and quickly moved to other countries.
How Severe Are The COVID-19 Variants?
In India the most severe COVID-19 variant was the delta variant. This deadly and lethal strain affected people who weren’t vaccinated and caused hospitalisation (with severe symptoms like drop in oxygen levels, COVID pneumonia, etc). On the other hand, the alpha variant was studied to be more severe than the original virus, its mutations like the B.1.1.7 lineage was more likely to land infected people in the hospital, talking about the omicron, it was it was considered that the original strain of omicron was more transmissible than the Delta variant.
India has seen the worst side of the coronavirus as it is the country with the second-highest coronavirus cases in the world, with 45,041,748 reported cases of COVID-19 infection. The United States lead the charge. India is ranked third with 533,623 deaths in the table of the countries with the highest COVID-19 deaths after the United States and Brazil. In October 2021, the World Health Organisation estimated 4.7 million excess deaths, both directly and indirectly related to COVID-19, to have taken place in India.
With recent cases being reported in Asian countries like Hong Kong and Singapore, India is at risk of experiencing a surge in cases of COVID-19. What causes a greater threat than anything is the movement of people, the virus can travel with people and infect the population of the country. Keeping in mind the vast population of India, the rate of spreading infection is relatively higher than in countries with lower populations. Currently, there aren’t many cases being reported in India that can be a possible cause of concern, but keeping in mind the continent in which India is located, the parallel threat continues to loom over.