by ezs | Dec 7, 2021 | evilzenscientist
Weekend – a quick look at the Washington State details – and that flattening of cases looks like an uptick. :\ On the positive side – Western Washington is >70% fully vaccinated. Infographic from the Seattle Times again. In the UK the apparent duplicity of the Government around Christmas parties last year, when everything was fully locked down, has knocked Omicron off the top of the headlines. An additional 75k deaths in England alone forecast by end of Spring 2022.
Friday – UK daily cases still climbing; there is no sharp climb and spike like Winter 2020 – this is 30-60k cases per day, since June. Hospitalisation remains lower than last winter. In Washington State, the case numbers have flattened.
Thursday – Booster jabs approved in US for 16+ . UK lockdowns “Plan B” returning.
Wednesday – “Three Pfizer jabs neutralise Omicron; Moderna or Novavax after AstraZenaca provides high immunity” – boosters look to provide protection against the Omicron variant.
UK cases are still climbing, and 50k cases per day; 300k+ per week.
Tuesday – “stealth omicron variant difficult to sequence as omicron by PCR tests” is a concern, I think this means PCR tests show positive, but not which variant. May just be some process iteration and tweaking to improve that. Still hope that current vaccines (and boosters) are effective.
Monday – Omicron all the time in the news. More transmissible, large R0 in unvaccinated.
This time last year – massive cases in Washington, the US and around the globe. 3000+ deaths per day in the US.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/series/coronavirus-live
https://www.seattletimes.com/tag/coronavirus/
by ezs | Nov 29, 2021 | evilzenscientist
Weekend – A great weekend away in BC, vaccination proof being looked at for all indoor bars and restuarants, masks being worn everywhere. Limited protests.
Weekly data from The Seattle Times shows a worrying uptick in positive cases in the last few days; but that could be related to Thanksgiving travel.
Friday – BC vaccination app is everywhere; proof of vaccination, QR code on phone, links to live “vaccinated or not” backend system. No real protests, and it felt much like Washington State in many respects.
Thursday – for the first time since the start of this pandemic, a trip outside the US. Land travel to British Columbia, Canada. ArriveCAN for entry, proof of vaccination, proof of negative test. Long lines at the border heading into Canada. We were worried that the omicron variant would close the border into Canada, or require additional testing while there, or for return.
Wednesday – Omicron variant was “in Europe, weeks ago”. Positive cases everywhere; including the US.
Tuesday – Boosters may protect against Omicron; they may not; a new vaccine may be needed; new vaccine within 100 days. Much not understood yet. Saw long lines for student booster shots in Capitol Hill, Seattle last night.
Monday – the news is all Omicron variant. South Africa being both vilified and held up as a great model of healthcare. Certainly testing and sequencing got early data out. Still lots of unknown factors. WHO says “very high” global risk.
This time last year – the start of the discussion about vaccinations, and breaking through the antivax rhetoric. WA Notify – the Washington State Notification App launched.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/series/coronavirus-live
https://www.seattletimes.com/tag/coronavirus/
by ezs | Nov 24, 2021 | evilzenscientist
Weekend – I predict it’s all Omicron until the end of the year. Two cases sequenced in the UK; also Czech Republic, Germany, Israel, Hong Kong. R is about 2.
Meanwhile, locally, cases are still trending down; we’re back to August levels of cases and hospitalisation.
Friday – that moved quickly. From sequencing, to reporting, to variant of concern, to travel restrictions in Europe and the US. B.1.1.529 is now the “Omicron variant”. Concerns around transmissibility and evasion of immunity.
Thursday – Thanksgiving here in the US. Thankful for vaccines, boosters and a local view that masked and vaxxed is the route back to some semblance of normal. Rumblings of a new variant from southern Africa (B.1.1.529) – first sequenced mid-November.
Wednesday – that multi-month long run of 30-40k cases in the UK is really concerning. That’s 4.5MM+ people in the UK who have had COVID since July, in a country with almost 70% fully vaccinated. The long term effects are unknown. Pictogram from The Guardian
Tuesday – new COVID cases rose by 32% in children under 18 in the US. Back to school, masks, slow vaccination. It’s the new vector for transmission. CDC/NIH approve vaccinations for kids 5+ now.
Monday – booster shots approved for all US adults.
This time last year – records being broken, the accelerating climb to the winter peak. 20% of tests returning positive in parts of Washington State. Looking back – this really was the worst period locally. Lots of cases, lots of illness, too much hospitalisation and death.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/series/coronavirus-live
https://www.seattletimes.com/tag/coronavirus/
by ezs | Nov 16, 2021 | evilzenscientist
Weekend – quite a miserable weekend of news. Bright spots in the local trends, and behaviours (masking, vaccinations, high rates of vaccination).
Friday – looking ahead just a few months, when the calendar rolls around again and into the third year of the pandemic. What to do? Continue daily updates? It certainly seems that after 20 months the pattern is: vaccinations, mandates, protests, cases and lockdowns.
Thursday – continuing the theme. Restrictions on the unvaccinated (Europe, some of the US), bans on vaccination mandates and testing (some of the US). Maddening.
Wednesday – it has been a while since looking at the JHU dashboard; this was go-to-reading at the start of the pandemic. Clear
Global cases show a clear fourth wave building.
Tuesday – in Europe, more cases, more lockdown, more restrictions on the non-vaccinated. In the US – law suits against all of these.
Monday – heading towards Thanksgiving and the holiday season. King County has >76% vaccinated; close, but still breakout cases.
This time last year – the leap in local, positive cases. 20% positive test rates. Huge pre-Thanksgiving test lines.
Monday (16 Nov 2020) – talking with friends about the last 36 weeks about “lockdown”: no school (all from home), no work (all from home), seen friends twice (socially distanced, wearing masks, outside), been outside the town a handful of times (to collect flour and visit Orcas Island for some isolated time away). This has not been normal, it’s not been with people. Our bubble of four has has had near zero contact with anyone else.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/series/coronavirus-live
https://www.seattletimes.com/tag/coronavirus/
by ezs | Nov 10, 2021 | evilzenscientist
Weekend – vaccine mandates are on, off, on again – with court cases across the US and Europe. Meanwhile CDC moves away from getting to herd immunity – meaning breakouts, variants and Covid becoming an endemic disease.
Weekly update from The Seattle Times.
Friday –
Thursday – case numbers plateauing in Washington State; rising elsewhere in the US again. Austria discusses “lockdown for the non vaccinated”, The Netherlands warns of new lockdowns. Continued legal challenges against vaccine mandates for staff.
Wednesday – the roll call of cases and deaths continues across Europe and Russia.
Tuesday – US Government (via the NIH) and Moderna arguing around patents.
Monday – this week I’ll get a booster, as will the eldest child. Moderna for both – so Pfizer-Pfizer-Moderna. International travel restrictions into the US start being lifted.
This time last year – post election, lots of new cases, folk urged not to travel for Thanksgiving. 1M new cases in the US per week.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/series/coronavirus-live
https://www.seattletimes.com/tag/coronavirus/
by ezs | Nov 1, 2021 | evilzenscientist
Weekend – US rollout of vaccine to kids starting.
Friday – European restrictions on vaccine requirements landing – similar to much of the US and other parts of the world
Thursday – slowly, slowly the UK hospital and death rates are ticking up; slow following the wave of positive cases. Graphic from The Guardian.
WHO: “Europe at center of pandemic” with >500k more deaths to follow.
Wednesday – US to start vaccination of children aged 5-11.
Tuesday – UK death rates climb, multiple European countries reporting new peaks of cases.
Monday – “vax” is the OED word of the year. JHU estimates “at least 5M deaths from Covid”. Australian border re-opens after almost 20 months.
This time last year – US hitting a million new cases per week; this was the build up to the massive, pre-vaccine, spike. Election day. Masks and politics.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/series/coronavirus-live
https://www.seattletimes.com/tag/coronavirus/
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