Coronavirus live news: return to school could lead to sharp rise in cases, UK expert warns; Vietnam reports 352 deaths as it happened – The Guardian

12.04pm EDT 12:04

Jessica Glenza

An unvaccinated teacher in a California elementary school infected half her students and 26 people in total when she contracted the Covid-19 Delta variant, researchers for the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found.

The researchers said the teacher attended school for two days despite displaying symptoms of Covid-19, and read aloud to her class without a mask during that time. Infections corresponded to the classrooms seating chart, with the students sitting closest to the teacher the most likely to be infected.

11.54am EDT 11:54

Separate figures published by the Office for National Statistics show there have been 156,000 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate.As of 9am today, there had been a further 32,406 lab-confirmed Covid-19 cases in the UK, the Government said.

11.51am EDT 11:51

Government data up to August 27 shows that of the 90,466,529 Covid jabs given in the UK, 47,958,928 were first doses, a rise of 43,160 on the previous day. Around 42,507,601 were second doses, an increase of 128,248.

11.48am EDT 11:48

The Government has said a further 133 people have died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of today, bringing the UK total to 132,376, reports PA.

11.11am EDT 11:11

Thats it from me, Lonie Chao-Fong, for today. Heres a quick roundup of whats been happening so far:

Updated at 11.16am EDT

10.53am EDT 10:53

Tennis fans aged 12 or over will be required to show proof of Covid vaccination in order to attend the US Open, tournament officials have confirmed.

The tournament did not originally require any proof of vaccination or a recent negative test for fans to enter. Attendees were also not required to wear a mask.

Stricter protocols were only introduced after tournament officials came under pressure from New Yorks mayor, Bill de Blasio, and other city leaders.

On Friday evening, the tournament announced on Twitter that proof of at least one vaccine shot would now be required for entrance to the grounds for all fans aged 12 and older. Masks will not be required.

Updated at 11.13am EDT

10.40am EDT 10:40

As September approaches, employers are increasingly asking workers to come in, with many offices adopting hybrid systems after months of working from home prompting mixed emotions. Commuting can be both expensive and polluting. UK workers pay more of their salary in commuting costs than their EU counterparts, and before the pandemic, two-thirds of people travelled to work by car. Despite the costs, which also include time, some value the commute for separating their home and work lives.

Seven people speak about how their commutes and their perspectives on travelling to work have changed since the onset of the pandemic.

Updated at 11.11am EDT

10.23am EDT 10:23

Government scientific advisers have warned universities about hosting freshers weeks next month, saying they could lead to very large spikes in coronavirus cases.

Universities across the country are planning to hold in-person events for first-year students next month for the first time since 2019.

Professor Susan Michie, director of the centre for behaviour change at University College London, as well as a member of the governments Covid-19 behavioural science team and part of the Independent Sage group of scientists, said that even if freshers events were held outdoors, there would still be a high risk associated with them.

She said:

Freshers fair week will have the potential for being a superspreader event, and however much universities pay attention to making it as safe as possible, its the behaviour of people that wont be known.

Danny Altmann, professor of immunology at Imperial College London and a member of the Sage immunology taskforce, echoed Michies predictions. He said that despite the vaccine rollout, the UK was in a way, way worse situation than we were last August heading into autumn as schools and universities prepared to go back.

He said:

So if I imagine vast numbers of kids getting together in halls of residence and in freshers week parties, I think how can one not predict that will lead to very large spikes in numbers?

Read the full report here:

Updated at 10.45am EDT

10.10am EDT 10:10

Heres some more detail on the story that Japan is investigating the death of two men who received jabs from batches of Modernas Covid-19 vaccine that were suspended from use due to contamination.

Agence France-Presse reports:

The men aged 30 and 38 died earlier this month after getting their second Moderna doses from one of three manufacturing lots suspended by the government on Thursday after several vials were found to be contaminated, the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry said the cause of death was still being investigated and currently, causal relations with the vaccinations are unknown.

Both men contracted fever after receiving their vaccinations and neither had underlying health conditions or allergic history, the ministry said.

Updated at 10.35am EDT

9.51am EDT 09:51

The Italian island region of Sicily will soon be placed under coronavirus restrictions the first time in two months that such measures have been reimposed on a regional level.

Italys health minister, Roberto Speranza, announced he had signed a new ordinance bringing Sicily under yellow zone restrictions, meaning people must wear a mask indoors and outdoors and restaurant diners will be limited to groups of four. The rule change is expected to take effect from Monday.

Since the start of summer, all regions in Italy had been classed at the lowest risk level white, but the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant has sparked concern. Sicily currently has the highest number of people in hospital and in intensive care.

Updated at 10.46am EDT

9.27am EDT 09:27

Sudan has received a shipment of 218,400 doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid vaccine as a donation from France, the health ministry and Unicef said.

The vaccines were delivered through the UN-backed Covax facility. In March, Sudan received an initial 820,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine through Covax and Unicef.

Sudan received 606,700 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccines as a donation from the US earlier in August, Reuters reports. The country has also received a number of doses of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine.

In a statement, Unicef said:

The vaccinations come at a critical time as the infection numbers are climbing while the country is preparing to re-open schools after three years of numerous interruptions.

As of Thursday, Sudan, with a population of 42 million, has officially recorded 37,699 infections and 2,831 deaths since the start of the pandemic. However, this is widely believed to reflect only a fraction of the actual numbers.

A study published late last year by scientists from Imperial College Londons Covid-19 response team in Sudan found that only about 2% of Covid deaths in the capital, Khartoum, had been reported.

Updated at 9.56am EDT

9.07am EDT 09:07

Megan, a 30-year-old from rural Nebraska in the US, feels torn. She hasnt been vaccinated against Covid-19, but if left to her own devices, things would be different. She worries about what would happen if she caught the virus and passed it on to her toddler daughter, whose history of health complications includes hospitalisation for lung problems.

Megan feels a responsibility to protect her child. But she also doesnt want to keep secrets from her husband who, along with his mother, is adamantly against the vaccine for political reasons.

As she figures out how to protect herself and her daughter without inciting major family conflict, Megan admits that her husbands reliance on conspiracy theories he learns from like-minded friends or social media posts has made it difficult to trust him. Especially now.

Had we been dating during the pandemic, this may have been a dealbreaker, she says.

Though the percentage of Americans who have received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine is slowly climbing amid the rise of the Delta variant, some have firmly made up their minds not to get the shot. Reasons for refusing the vaccine may vary, but one common byproduct has become clear: seriously strained relationships with loved ones on the other side of the heated moral and ideological debate.

Read the full report here:

Updated at 9.56am EDT

8.48am EDT 08:48

The US government confirmed the worlds first case of coronavirus in deer on Friday, adding to the list of animals known to have tested positive for the disease.

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported infections of Sars-CoV-2 in wild white-tailed deer in the state of Ohio, according to a statement on Friday.

A USDA spokesperson told Reuters:

We do not know how the deer were exposed to Sars-CoV-2. Its possible they were exposed through people, the environment, other deer, or another animal species.

The USDA has previously reported coronavirus in animals including dogs, cats, tigers, lions, snow leopards, otters, gorillas and mink.

Updated at 9.55am EDT

Visit link:

Coronavirus live news: return to school could lead to sharp rise in cases, UK expert warns; Vietnam reports 352 deaths as it happened - The Guardian