Coronavirus digest: Belgium asks Germany for help relieving ‘exhausted’ hospitals

Belgium’s Health Ministry said Friday that the country’s intensive care units are struggling to cope with a third wave of coronavirus infections and has asked Germany for help relieving the patient load, according to a Belgian health official. 

Germany received coronavirus patients from Belgium in November during an earlier wave of the pandemic, and earlier this week, more patients suffering from COVID-19 were brought to nearby Aachen, just across the border.

“Germany is already prepared to take over patients,” said Belgian health official Marcel Van der Auwera. 

Van der Auwera said hospital staff in Belgium were “exhausted, pushed well beyond their limits.” He did not specify how many patents could be transferred to German hospitals. 

Van der Auwera added that there were just 82 beds currently available in intensive care units across the country.  

Nevertheless, Belgium still plans to ease restrictions in the coming weeks.

Prime Minister Alexander De Croo confirmed Friday that restaurants and cafes would reopen outdoor terraces from May 8, with four people allowed per table.

Here’s a roundup of the latest coronavirus news from elsewhere in Europe and the rest of the world: 

Europe

Germany reported 23,392 coronavirus cases on Saturday, while 286 more people have died from COVID-19, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) announced in its daily update.

In the week a national “emergency brake” was signed off by President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in order to stem the tide of infections, the federal government is set to upgrade Germany’s 2021 economic growth forecast, despite the ongoing restrictions.

Industries are bouncing back from the economic fallout caused by the pandemic, coronavirus patients from Belgium said in German media reports published Saturday.

“Despite the continuing lockdowns, the economy is developing stronger than many expected,” Altmaier told the Funke Media Group.

“In January, we forecast growth of 3%. Current data shows that it will even be slightly higher,” Altmaier said. Germany’s federal government will announce its spring projections on Thursday. 

Asia

India’s Supreme Court has told Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government that it wants a “national plan” for the supply of oxygen and essential drugs for the treatment of coronavirus patients.

India’s underfunded health system is falling apart as the world’s worst coronavirus surge  shows no signs of easing up. India registered a global record in daily infections for a second straight day on Friday with 332,730 reported cases.

And now, the Press Trust of India news agency has said the country’s Defense Ministry will fly 23 mobile oxygen generating plants from Germany to help with critical shortages of the vital gas, drugs and hospital beds. Each plant will be able to produce 2,400 liters of oxygen per hour, the agency reported.

Kuwait’s directorate general of civil aviation said early on Saturday that it had suspended all direct commercial flights coming from India, beginning April 24, remaining in place “until further notice.”

Americas

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters he was “very excited” as he received his first dose of AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine at an Ottawa pharmacy.

Trudeau then watched on as his wife Sophie received her first shot.

Justin Trudeau received the AstraZeneca vaccine in Ottawa

The Johnson Johnson COVID-19 shot will be administered with immediate effect in the United States after a brief halt to the rolllout of the one-dose vaccine prompted by blood clot fears.

Oceania

New Zealand has paused its newly opened travel bubble with Australia after a COVID-19 outbreak in the west of its larger neighbor.

“As set out in our Trans-Tasman bubble protocols, travel between New Zealand and Western Australia has been paused, pending further advice from the state government,” the New Zealand government said on its website.

The decision came after Western Australia announced that the regions of Perth and Peel were entering a three-day lockdown, starting midnight Friday to Saturday, due to a traveler testing positive for the virus.

On April 19, Australia and New Zealand began an arrangement whereby travelers between the two countries no longer needed to go into a managed isolation facility.

jsi/wmr (AP, AFP, dpa, Reuters)

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