New Zealand: 26 people die of Covid in 24 hours, all above 60

As the nation fights a new wave of the Omicron strain that is disproportionately hurting the senior population, New Zealanders are dying from COVID-19 at historic rates. According to Health Ministry data, the virus claimed 151 lives in the seven days leading up to July 16 compared to 115 during the worst week of the last wave in March. According to a statement released by the government on Friday, 26 persons with Covid died in the past 24 hours, all of whom were above 60.

The Omicron BA.5 sub-variant, which contains 5.1 million inhabitants, is what's causing the present wave in New Zealand. In the last seven days, there have been 64,780 active cases, while authorities claim that many illnesses go undetected. New Zealand's quick response to the pandemic and its geographic isolation kept it mostly free of the virus until the end of last year, and it was once seen as a model for preventing Covid infection. When the population was largely immunised this year, the government abandoned its zero-Covid strategy. The virus has been permitted to spread since that time.

Medical facilities, including emergency rooms, general practises, and clinics, are under stress. Hospitalization rates, according to data from the Health Ministry, are still below their peak in March. Some doctors are pressuring the government to reimpose restrictions on public meetings or to make masks mandatory in schools, but the administration is defying their demands. Iona Holsted, the director of the Education Ministry, stated on Thursday that when students returned from their holidays the following week, the ministry had instructed schools to enforce the use of masks as much as possible.

(with inputs from agencies)