'Old normal' still a distant dream? COVID cases, deaths rise globally

Relaxations of mask rules and social distancing norms, low vaccination rate, swift spread of the more contagious Delta variant - these are some of the reasons attributed to the growing number of cases. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 55,000 lives were lost last week, which is a 3% increase from the week before.

The hopes of returning to the "old normal" seems to have got a setback with COVID cases growing across the world. What's worrying furthet is the fact that that after nine straight weeks, the number of COVID deaths also increased last week. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 55,000 lives were lost, which is a 3% increase from the week before. Cases rose 10% last week to nearly 3 million, with the highest numbers of cases recorded in India, Brazil, Indonesia and Britain, WHO said.

Several reasons are attributed to this. Relaxations of mask rules and social distancing norms, low vaccination rate, swift spread of the more contagious Delta variant - are some of the reasons behind this. With respect to the Delta variant, WHO said that the strain has now been identified in 111 countries and is expected to become globally dominant in the coming months.

Sarah McCool, a professor of public health at Georgia State University, said the combination amounts to a "recipe for a potential tinderbox. "It's important that we recognise that COVID has the potential for explosive outbreaks," warned Dr David Dowdy, an infectious disease specialist at Johns Hopkins University.

Amid the surge, the death toll in hard-hit Argentina surpassed 100,000. Daily coronavirus deaths in Russia hit record highs this week. In Belgium, COVID-19 infections, driven by the delta variant among the young, have almost doubled over the past week. Britain recorded a one-day total of more than 40,000 new cases for the first time in six months.

In Myanmar, crematoriums are working morning to night. In Indonesia, which recorded almost 1,000 deaths and over 54,000 new cases Wednesday, up from around 8,000 cases per day a month ago, people near Jakarta are pitching in to help gravediggers keep up. "As the diggers are too tired and do not have enough resources to dig, the residents in my neighbourhood decided to help," Jaya Abidin said. "Because if we do not do this, we will have to wait in turn a long time for a burial."

In the US, with one of the highest vaccination rates in the world, newly confirmed infections per day have doubled over the past two weeks to an average of about 24,000, though deaths are still on a downward trajectory at around 260 a day. Los Angeles County, the most populous county in the US, reported its fifth straight day Tuesday of more than 1,000 new cases.

Tokyo is under a fourth state of emergency ahead of the Summer Games this month, with infections climbing fast and hospital beds filling up. Experts have said caseloads could rise above 1,000 before the Olympics and multiply to thousands during the games.

The spike has led to additional restrictions in places like Sydney, Australia, where the 5 million residents will remain in lockdown through at least the end of July, two weeks longer than planned. South Korea has placed the Seoul area under its toughest distancing rules yet because of record case levels.

Parts of Spain, including Barcelona, moved to impose an overnight curfew. London Mayor Sadiq Khan said masks will be required on buses and trains even after other restrictions in England are lifted next week. Italy warned all those going abroad that they might have to quarantine before returning home.

Chicago announced that unvaccinated travellers from Missouri and Arkansas must either quarantine for 10 days or have a negative COVID-19 test. Connecticut lawmakers voted Wednesday (July 14) to again extend Democratic Gov Ned Lamont's emergency declarations, despite pushback from Republicans and some Democrats who argued it is time to get back to normal. Among other things, the move keeps in place orders requiring masks in certain settings.

An Alabama military base has ordered troops to show proof of vaccination before they can go maskless as the state sees an uptick in COVID-19 cases, a rise attributed to low vaccination rates. The measure was put in place Tuesday at Fort Rucker, home to the Army's aviation program.

As troubling as the figures are around the world, they are still well below the alarming numbers seen earlier this year. Seven months into the vaccination drive, global deaths are down to around 7,900 a day, after topping out at over 18,000 a day in January, according to Johns Hopkins data. Cases are running at around 450,000 a day, down by half since their peak in late April.

WHO acknowledged that many countries are now facing considerable pressure to lift all remaining precautions but warned that failing to do it the right way will just give the virus more opportunity to spread. Pressure is growing worldwide to boost vaccination rates to counter the rise. "If you have been waiting, if you have been on the fence, sign up and get that shot as soon as possible," New York City Health Commissioner Dr Dave Chokshi pleaded.

(With Agency inputs)