The coronavirus pandemic is “easily the most serious emergency” the WHO has declared, the agency said today, as global cases increased by more than 16 million.
The global count has risen by a million in just four days, led by massive outbreaks in the United States, India, and Brazil, accumulating tens of thousands of new cases per day.
South Africa is also seeing more than 10,000 new cases a day, while places like Spain, Belgium and Hong Kong face the second wave of the disease.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the number of cases had doubled in just six weeks when he warned today that “the pandemic continues to accelerate.”
However, while cases have risen to record levels, global deaths have remained stagnant at around 30,000 to 40,000 per week.
The global coronavirus case count has reached 16 million after increasing by one million in just four days, led by massive outbreaks in the United States, India and Brazil.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (pictured) warned today that the global number of coronavirus cases had doubled in just six weeks
Speaking nearly six months after the WHO first declared a global health emergency, Tedros said scientists “were still learning” about how to tackle the virus.
“This is the sixth time that a global health emergency has been declared under the International Health Regulations, but it is easily the most serious,” he said.
“Almost 16 million cases have been reported to the WHO and more than 640,000 deaths,” he said before the cases exceeded the 16 million threshold.
‘And the pandemic continues to accelerate. In the past six weeks, the total number of cases has roughly doubled.
When the health emergency was declared on January 30, there were fewer than 100 cases outside of China, Tedros said.
According to WHO figures, the world passed a million confirmed cases on April 4, at which time much of the West was locked up.
The world reached five million cases on May 23, 114 days after the health emergency declaration, but the next five million took just 36 days until June 28.
The jump from 10 million to 15 million took just 26 days until July 23, and the last million cases have been recorded in just four days.
The United States, India and Brazil, the three countries with more than a million self-confirmed cases, are receiving the brunt of the latest increase.
India set a new record of 49,931 cases in 24 hours today, while Brazil has averaged almost 46,000 cases per day in the past week.
Elsewhere in Latin America, countries like Mexico, Colombia and Argentina are accumulating thousands of new cases per day, with the death toll in Mexico now almost as high as that of Britain.
Hong Kong is among the places to experience a second wave of coronavirus cases (in the photo, an older person is transferred from a nursing home in the Chinese-controlled city on Friday)
Some European countries have seen an increase in cases in recent days, including Spain, which has seen Britain, France and Norway impose new travel restrictions.
Tedros praised countries like Germany and South Korea for keeping their outbreaks under control because social distancing measures were followed, but warned that “where they are not, cases are increasing.”
He added: ‘Covid-19 has changed our world. It has brought people, communities and nations together, and has separated them.
‘It has shown what humans are capable of, both positively and negatively. We have learned a great deal and are still learning.
“But although our world has changed, the fundamental pillars of the response have not: political leadership and informing, engaging and listening to communities.
‘And they also don’t have the basic measures necessary to suppress transmission and save lives: finding, isolating, testing, and treating cases; and track and quarantine your contacts.
‘Stay away from others, wash your hands, avoid crowded and closed areas, and wear a mask where recommended.
‘When these measures are followed, the cases decrease. Where they are not, cases go up.
Among the places suffering a new wave of coronavirus cases is Hong Kong, with more than 1,000 new infections since early July.
New cases have been above 100 in the past five days and the city of 7.5 million now has more than 2,700 infections with 20 deaths, threatening to overwhelm hospitals.
The new stringent measures include mandatory masks, a ban on more than two people from meeting in public, and restaurants can only serve takeout meals.
The government has already closed a number of businesses, including bars, nightclubs, and gyms, and regulations have been tightened for cargo ships and aircrews.
In Europe, Spain, France and Germany have seen weekly increases in their number of new cases.
Belgium (where a health worker administering a coronavirus test is represented in Brussels today) is among the countries facing a second wave of virus cases.
Spain has seen Britain, France and Norway impose new travel restrictions after adding 12,166 new cases to its account last week, compared to 6,347 the week before.
In Germany, which has been widely praised for its handling of the crisis, officials say the rising numbers are “very worrying.”
The 815 new cases last Friday were the highest since May 15, and the Robert Koch Institute for Diseases (RKI) says cases are growing in several of Germany’s 16 states.
‘Further deterioration of the situation should be avoided at all costs. This will only be successful if the entire population continues to be engaged, ” said the RKI.
Belgium is also seeing a “worrying” increase, health authorities warned today, with almost half of new infections registered in the port city of Antwerp.
There were 1,952 new cases in Belgium in the past week, more than 70 percent in the previous week, authorities announced.
“The rapid growth in the number of cases is worrisome,” said Frederique Jacobs, professor of infectious diseases and spokesperson for the Belgian virus working group.
Local measures have been taken to try to contain the spike in Antwerp, but Jacobs warned that “the number of infections is also increasing considerably in the rest of the country.”
“Most infections continue to come in among the workforce, that is, people ages 20 to 59,” Jacobs said.
Belgium was one of the countries with the highest infection rates per capita at the height of the crisis in Europe.
A three-year-old girl with serious pre-existing health problems became Belgium’s youngest known coronavirus victim last week.
The stricter rules on wearing masks went into effect Saturday amid growing fears of a second wave of the pandemic.
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