Covid-19 global updates: England marks 'Freedom Day' as experts blast lifting of restrictions - The Washington Post

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LONDON — England on Monday lifted almost all of its remaining coronavirus restrictions, including an indoor mask mandate, even as new cases soared to some of the highest levels in months and several senior government officials — including Prime Minister Boris Johnson — were in quarantine after British Health Secretary Sajid Javid tested positive for the virus.

The final stage of reopening, widely referred to as “Freedom Day,” brought joy to some eager for a return to normal life and a growing sense of anxiety to others who deemed the government’s decision reckless and irresponsible.

Here are some significant developments:

• Three South African soccer players tested positive for the coronavirus at Tokyo’s Olympic Village over the weekend, marking the first confirmed cases among athletes just days before the Opening Ceremonies.
• Australian authorities said Monday that they were extending a lockdown in Victoria state, including the city of Melbourne, after detecting more locally transmitted coronavirus cases. State Premier Daniel Andrews did not say how long the restrictions would be in force.
• More than 80 percent of some 300 personnel aboard a South Korean destroyer in the Gulf of Aden have tested positive for covid-19, Reuters reported Monday, citing the country’s military leadership.
• Indonesia, facing what experts call a “catastrophic” coronavirus surge as the delta variant rips through hospitals, is now recording some of the highest daily case numbers in the world, outpacing global pandemic hot spots such as India and Brazil.

Professor Neil Ferguson, a prominent scientist whose modeling helped shape England’s lockdown strategy, told the BBC on Sunday that it was “almost inevitable” that the latest easing of restrictions would bring on 100,000 daily cases, with about 1,000 hospitalizations, despite the fact that nearly half the population is fully vaccinated.

Earlier this month, a group of medical experts deemed the decision “dangerous and premature” and called for reopening to be delayed until more people — especially younger people — are inoculated.

Britain was recording daily case numbers in the low thousands in April but is now suffering a surge in infections blamed on the more contagious delta variant first identified in India. According to Our World in Data, which tracks publicly available figures, the country’s seven-day average of daily new cases is now more than 44,000, even as vaccines have so far helped keep hospitalizations and deaths at bay.

Despite the rising numbers, hundreds of people lined up to dance the night away at an overflowing nightclub in central London as the clock struck midnight Monday. Dancers crammed together in close proximity to mark the occasion, as many business owners and staff reopened their doors for the first time since March last year.

While the guidance on wearing a face covering on public transport varies across the country, commuters using public transport in London must still wear a mask, according to a ruling from Transport for London, a local government body responsible for various rail networks, buses, taxis and other modes of transportation in the capital.

“A reminder that today won’t feel like ‘freedom day’ for everyone,” London Mayor Sadiq Khan tweeted on Monday. “Please continue to be mindful of those around you, and the things you can do to keep our city safe.”

Britain has recorded more than 5.4 million coronavirus cases and 129,000 virus-related deaths since the pandemic began.

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Covid-19 global updates: England marks 'Freedom Day' as experts blast lifting of restrictions - The Washington Post
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