Cincunri Sakia

Jumat, 17 April 2020

Coronavirus updates: Global COVID-19 deaths soar as China hikes Wuhan toll - CBS News

A new phrase is trending in Japan: "corona-divorce." With couples suddenly forced to share quarters nonstop, many in cramped Japanese apartments, the shelter-in-place decrees are taking a toll on matrimonial harmony.

It's led Japanese hotel chain Kasoku to market "temporary evacuation space" for fed-up spouses. The term has traditionally been applied to shelters used during natural disasters, but now, for $40 a day, fleeing spouses can find sanctuary in one of the company's 500 fully-furnished, WiFi-equipped rooms.

Of the 28 customers who've taken refuge so far, about two-thirds are disgruntled wives, Kasoku spokesman Kosuke Amano told CBS News, adding that interest in the marital escape scheme has "exceeded expectations."

An image from Tokyo-based hotel chain Kasoku shows advertising for the firm's "corona-divorce" refuge rooms, offered for about $40 per night to spouses who need a break from round-the-clock exposure to their partners. Kasoku

For those who "want to avoid corona-divorce at all costs," the firm's website lightheartedly advises, "take advantage of temporary evacuation! Before resorting to a corona-divorce, giving yourself some space is important."

The service was prompted by reports of surges in divorce and domestic violence in other countries, as residents endure weeks of lockdown to halt the spread of COVID-19.

The strain of prolonged life at home turned deadly for a Tokyo couple earlier this month. Kazuo Makino, 59, was arrested on suspicion of murdering his 57-year-old wife, apparently after she complained he wasn't earning as much because of the epidemic.

With Japan's official state of emergency now extended to cover the entire country, corona-divorce hotels might, sadly, be a growth industry here.

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Coronavirus updates: Global COVID-19 deaths soar as China hikes Wuhan toll - CBS News

The service was prompted by reports of surges in divorce and domestic violence in other countries, as residents endure weeks of lockdown to halt the spread of COVID-19.

With Japan's official state of emergency now extended to cover the entire country, corona-divorce hotels might, sadly, be a growth industry here.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

Coronavirus updates: Global COVID-19 deaths soar as China hikes Wuhan toll - CBS News

Spain's coronavirus death toll soared past 19,000 on Thursday after another 551 people died of COVID-19, with the numbers reflecting a slowdown after nearly five weeks on lockdown.

One of the worst-hit countries in the world, Spain has seen the increase in the number of deaths and infections come down over the past fortnight, with the overnight fatalities taking the toll to 19,130.

But there are growing concerns that the toll may be far higher, with regional authorities in Madrid and Catalonia insisting they each had thousands more victims than the official count.

Madrid, which by Thursday counted 6,877 deaths, has mooted a figure well above 10,000, while Catalonia, where some 3,855 have died, believes its toll to be nearly double that after changing counting method.

Spain also recorded 5,183 new cases of COVID-19, taking the overall figure to 182,816 -- officially second highest in the world behind the United States.

SPAIN-HEALTH-VIRUS-ELDERLY — A woman is wheeled into an ambulance outside the Vitalia care home for the elderly in Las Rozas near Madrid on April 16, 2020 amid a national lockdown to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Getty

Health authorities say the virus has peaked in Spain since the number of daily deaths reached 950 people on April 2, but they have insisted on maintaining the March 14 lockdown that is likely to be extended into mid-May.

One of the tightest lockdowns in Europe, the restrictions allow just essential workers out, otherwise the rest of the population can only leave home to buy food and medicine, to attend a medical emergency or to briefly walk the dog.

- AFP

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2020-04-17 10:15:35Z
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Coronavirus updates: Global COVID-19 deaths soar as China hikes Wuhan toll - CBS News

The service was prompted by reports of surges in divorce and domestic violence in other countries, as residents endure weeks of lockdown to halt the spread of COVID-19.

With Japan's official state of emergency now extended to cover the entire country, corona-divorce hotels might, sadly, be a growth industry here.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

Coronavirus updates: Global COVID-19 deaths soar as China hikes Wuhan toll - CBS News

9m ago

Prince Harry and Meghan volunteer to deliver meals in L.A. amid pandemic

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are wasting no time in starting to volunteer in their new city of residence.

ET confirms the couple joined Project Angel Food to deliver meals on Wednesday in West Hollywood, California, to 20 clients living with critical illnesses.

ET has learned that the duchess was aware of Project Angel Food's work from growing up in the area and has always been inspired by the incredible impact they have on the community. Her mom, Doria Ragland, who is a frontline worker herself, had mentioned that they were in great need of support during this unprecedented time. Click here to read the full story.

32m ago

London mayor pushes U.K. government for "consistent" guidance on face coverings

London Mayor Sadiq Khan says wearing face coverings, such as bandannas and scarves, could provide people with another layer of protection against the coronavirus and is lobbying the British government to change its advice.

Khan told BBC radio that the evidence he has seen is that wearing a non-medical facial covering "reduces the chances" of those who have the virus of giving it to somebody else. However, he did concede that it "doesn't necessarily limit your changes of catching the virus."

He said changing the advice would be helpful for those in public transport or in shops, where some people may find it difficult to abide by the social distancing guidelines of staying two 6 feet apart.

New York will require face masks in public, Governor Cuomo announces

Khan said it's important that there's a "consistent approach" across the country and that's why he's lobbying the government and its advisers.

The government's chief medical adviser, Professor Chris Whitty, said Thursday that the evidence around masks being helpful in preventing the spread of the coronavirus is "weak," while conceding it was a "live issue."

46m ago

China's Wuhan hikes virus death toll 50%, to almost 4,000

China's coronavirus ground-zero city of Wuhan on Friday abruptly raised its death toll by 50 percent, saying many fatal cases were "mistakenly reported" or missed entirely in an admission that comes amid growing global doubts about Chinese transparency.

The city government said in a social media posting that it had added 1,290 deaths to the tally in Wuhan, where the global pandemic emerged and which has suffered the vast majority of China's fatalities from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. That brings the total number of deaths in the city to 3,869.

The change also pushes the nationwide death toll up by nearly 39 percent to 4,632, based on official national data released earlier on Friday.

China has come under increasing pressure over the coronavirus pandemic from Western powers led by the United States, which has raised doubts about Chinese transparency and is probing whether the virus could have slipped into the human population by way of an infectious disease laboratory in Wuhan.

Calls to close global "wet markets" amid coronavirus pandemic

Wuhan's epidemic prevention and control headquarters cited several reasons for the missed cases, including the fact that the city's medical staff were overwhelmed in the early days as infections climbed, leading to "late reporting, omissions or mis-reporting".

It also cited insufficient testing and treatment facilities, and said some patients died at home and thus their deaths were not properly reported.

-CBS/AFP

49m ago

Philippines' Duterte threatens martial law-like virus crackdown

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has threatened a martial law-like crackdown to stop people flouting a virus lockdown in the nation's capital.

Duterte spoke a day after authorities reported an upsurge of cars on Manila's roads, which had been nearly deserted since a sweeping lockdown was imposed a month ago on about half the country's 110 million people.

"I'm just asking for a little discipline. If not, if you do not believe me, then the military and police will take over," Duterte said in a televised speech late Thursday. "The military and police will enforce social distancing at curfew... It's like martial law. You choose."

Duterte has repeatedly threatened to impose nationwide military rule over the Philippines, where the mere words evoke the worst rights abuses of the Ferdinand Marcos dictatorship.

The closest Duterte has come is the imposition of martial law over Mindanao, the nation's southern third, in response to Islamic State-inspired militants' siege of the city of Marawi.

- AFP

50m ago

China suffers worst economic drop since '70s in virus battle

China suffered its worst economic contraction since since at least the 1970s in the first quarter as it fought the coronavirus, and weak consumer spending and factory activity suggest it faces a longer, harder recovery than initially expected.

The world's second-largest economy shrank 6.8% from a year ago in the three months ending in March after factories, shops and travel were closed to contain the infection, official data showed Friday.

That was stronger than some forecasts that called for a contraction of up to 16%, but still China's worst performance since before market-style economic reforms started in 1979.

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2020-04-17 09:25:00Z
CBMiWmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNic25ld3MuY29tL2xpdmUtdXBkYXRlcy9jb3JvbmF2aXJ1cy1wYW5kZW1pYy1jb3ZpZC0xOS1sYXRlc3QtbmV3cy0yMDIwLTA0LTE3L9IBXmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNic25ld3MuY29tL2FtcC9saXZlLXVwZGF0ZXMvY29yb25hdmlydXMtcGFuZGVtaWMtY292aWQtMTktbGF0ZXN0LW5ld3MtMjAyMC0wNC0xNy8

Backing Trump, U.S. Republicans call for WHO chief to resign - Reuters

WASHINGTON, April 16 (Reuters) - Republican U.S. lawmakers called on President Donald Trump on Thursday to withhold payments to the World Health Organization until its director general resigns, backing Trump’s criticism of the U.N. agency’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

Seventeen of Trump’s fellow Republicans on the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee wrote a letter to Trump supporting his announcement this week that he was withholding funding for the WHO, and saying he should condition the resumption of contributions on the resignation of Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

Trump drew immediately condemnation on Tuesday from many world leaders and health experts, as well as U.S. Democrats, by saying he would halt U.S. funding of the Geneva-based WHO over its handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

They said the WHO may need reorganization but that Trump should not try to force it in the middle of a crisis that has killed more than 138,000 people globally and devastated world economies.

The U.S. president, who has reacted angrily to criticism of his own handling of the virus outbreak, said the WHO had promoted China’s “disinformation” about the coronavirus and been too lenient with Beijing in the early weeks of the crisis.

In their letter, the House Republicans said they had lost faith in Tedros and blamed the WHO and Chinese Communist Party for the extent of the current global health crisis, although they praised the “vital role” the WHO plays around the world.

“At times, the WHO is the only organization working on the ground in the worst places in the world, and the U.S. should continue to support this important work,” said the letter, led by Representative Mike McCaul, the committee’s senior Republican.

“However, it is imperative that we act swiftly to ensure the impartiality, transparency, and legitimacy of this valuable institution,” the letter said. (Reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Peter Cooney)

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2020-04-17 07:32:52Z
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Factbox: Trump's coronavirus reopening guidelines - Reuters

(Reuters) - President Donald Trump rolled out his guidelines for how the United States can reopen businesses and schools shut down by the coronavirus Thursday evening.

Reuters viewed an early version of the guidelines. Here are the main takeaways:

1. States should have a “downward trajectory” of COVID-19 cases for a 14-day period before reopening, or a downward trajectory of positive tests for the same time period, given flat or increasing testing levels.

Track infections and deaths by state here here

2. U.S. states have core responsibility for testing and tracing citizens. A list of “core state preparedness responsibilities” includes the “ability to quickly set up safe and efficient screening and testing sites” and ensure “surveillance sites are screening for asymptomatic cases” and COVID-19 positive people are traced.

U.S. testing to date has been delayed here and chaotic, thanks to federal government roadblocks and failures. Alphabet's (GOOGL.O) Google and Apple Inc (AAPL.O) are working together on software to make contact tracing easier, but that will not be available here until mid-May.

3. Phase 1 of the reopening recommends that schools and daycare facilities remain closed and that people maintain social distancing in public. Businesses should continue to encourage teleworking, and meetings of more than 10 people should be discouraged.

Event spaces like movie theaters can reopen, with “strict” social distancing measures in place. Elective surgeries can resume, on an outpatient basis.

Non-essential travel and visits to senior living facilities should remain suspended. Gyms can reopen, with proper sanitation and distances, but bars should not.

4. Phase 2 of the plan, which states should progress to after another 14-day decline in positive cases, includes lifting the ban on non-essential travel. It recommends businesses continue to encourage teleworking and close common areas where people congregate.

Employers should consider special accommodation for personnel who are members of a “vulnerable population,” which is defined as the elderly or people with underlying conditions like obesity, asthma and chronic lung conditions.

U.S. President Donald Trump stands in front of a slide on a video monitor debuting "Phase One" of his administration's plans for "Opening Up America Again" during the daily coronavirus task force briefing at the White House in Washington, U.S., April 16, 2020. REUTERS/Leah Millis

Schools and youth activities can resume, and bars can reopen with minimized standing room areas. Large venues, like sporting arenas and houses of worship, can operate under “moderate” physical distancing. Elective surgeries on an in-patient business can resume.

5. Phase 3 of the plan, which states can enter after another 14-day period of declining cases, allows businesses to resume “unrestricted staffing” of worksites, and visits to senior homes to resume.

Large venues can operate with limited physical distancing guidelines and bars can increase standing-room-only areas.

Reporting by Jeff Mason; Writing by Heather Timmons; Editing by Leslie Adler

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2020-04-17 07:08:43Z
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