(Deutsche Welle Chinese website) Dutch Prime Minister Rutte announced on Saturday night (December 18) that the Netherlands will enter a strict lockdown during Christmas and New Years, trying to control the highly contagious Omicron (omicron) The spread of variants. All non-essential shops and services, including restaurants, barber shops, museums and gyms will be closed from Sunday until January 14. All schools will also be closed until at least January 9.
Rutte said at a TV news conference: “The Netherlands has closed the city again. This is inevitable, because the fifth wave of the epidemic caused by the Omi Keron variant is approaching us.”
Other measures include recommending that each family receive no more than two visitors, and outdoor gatherings are also limited to two people. Rutte warned that if no action is taken now, it may lead to “hospitals face an uncontrollable situation.” In order to make room for patients with new crowns, Dutch hospitals have reduced routine care.
Amsterdam residents queuing to shop before closing the city
Variants make the epidemic worse
After the curfew was imposed at the end of November, the infection rate in the Netherlands has dropped. In the previous few weeks, the infection rate in the country has continued to hit new highs. However, there have been too many violent demonstrations after the curfew.
The emergence of the Omi Keron strain has made the country’s epidemic worse. Since the strain was first discovered in the Netherlands three weeks ago, the number of related infections has increased sharply. The number of COVID-19 patients hospitalized was close to the highest level this year, and the hospital was overwhelmed.
The famous Dutch infectious disease expert Jaap van Dissel said that the Omi Keron strain is expected to become the main virus variant in the Netherlands on Christmas and New Year’s Eve.
Although more than 85% of the Dutch adult population has been vaccinated, less than 9% of adults have received booster shots, which is relatively low among European countries.
According to figures released by the National Institute of Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) on Saturday, the country has reported more than 2.9 million new crown cases and 20,420 deaths since the beginning of the new crown virus outbreak. In the past 24 hours, there were 14,616 new cases in the Netherlands.
(Reuters)
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