WHO warns: worse pandemics could lie ahead
World Health Organization warned that virus is “not necessarily the big one” and that worse pandemics could lie ahead. Senior officials have repeatedly emphasized that the consequences of the pandemic can be long-term. The organization called on people to learn how to better cope with crisis situations. The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases worldwide has exceeded 81 million.
“This is a wake-up call. If there is one thing we need to take from this pandemic with all tragedies we have lost is that we need get our act together. We need to get ready for something that may even be more severe in the future,” said Mike Ryan, Executive Director, WHO Health Emergencies Programme.
Egypt to impose fine for not wearing masks in public
Egypt’s government announced that it is imposing a little over US$3 fine for not wearing masks in public places starting next Sunday, January 3. The mask regime in Egypt has been in effect since the end of May, but all fines were paid only after the case was considered in court. Now police officers will fine on the spot drawing up a special protocol. All New Year’s Eve celebrations were canceled due to the second wave of coronavirus in the country.
Hundreds of British tourists flee quarantine in Switzerland
British tourists are fleeing quarantine in Switzerland. Nationals of the United Kingdom were going to spend a vacation in ski resort of Verbier, but their plans were hampered due to a new variant of coronavirus. Swiss authorities ordered all Britons to be sent to isolation for ten days, which apparently did not please the tourists and they secretly left their hotels. Now, only twelve out of more than 300 British arrivals are left in the quarantine.
