Is Europe On High Alert Right Now? And Why Is That?

Not the kind of news that would make anyone’s day, especially in Europe, but truth is that in what appears to be a sudden surge in new COVID 19 cases has put the continent on high-alert. You read that right, sans any mistakes, whatsoever.

Europe is on high alert was just the kind of unwanted headline trending on most news outlets that caught everyone’s attention, especially at a time where slowly and suddenly much of the continent had been inching closer to normality.

It’s no longer a news riddled with any shock value that much of Europe, especially Central and Western regions, had begun the walkback to normalcy. This included reopening of schools and other hubs of social interaction and interest. There were interesting news pieces that pointed to a certain positivity that bars and pubs, and lounges and restaurants had all been reopened whether one spoke of France, Germany, Belgium and regions as far as the United Kingdom.

But all of that may now be due for recourse because the news puts it succinctly- Europe is on high alert!

So the leading question is- just how did this happen and all too suddenly? Of course, before we proceed to figure out the stinging new development, it helps to rekindle our memories to recollect that the much-debated ‘second wave’ of COVID-19 cases, it was said, would have stuck in October.

But where we are staring at, at present- it appears that the entire situation has changed much too rapidly.

In order to understand the sudden downing, if one might call it that, it’s important to note what transpired across different parts of the 44-nation-strong continent over the last week.

Starting with France, as many as 1,695 new cases were reported this last Wednesday, the number actually pointing to a two-month high figure for the country. If that’s not a warning, then one wonders, what is? What hurt most was that the suddenness of new cases coincided with the period wherein France was clinging to normalcy.

Moving on to Ireland, this last Saturday, the country recorded the highest number of new Coronavirus cases since the month of May. And although at 74, they hardly point to a massive figure, it is, nonetheless, a far cry -as Forbes put it- to the 58 per day, as noted up to the last week. This, in turn, affected cities like Offaly, Laois, and Kildare.

Furthermore, Spain, as of the last week, became the country with the most number of active cases in the entirety of Western Europe, where a recent spike in new cases made the country overtake all of the United Kingdom.

But if you thought, that that was it, then you are mistaken as more cases were even reported in Angela Merkel-land as Germany registered 1,045 new infections on Thursday. Not before last week did Germany record four-digit cases even once in the three-month history!

All of the above told, it’s hardly a surprise to note as to why they’re saying Europe is on high alert.

Also Read: More People Die In France Annually Than From Covid-19 Virus, On An Average

But that being told, while the above suffices to explain where have the new cases appeared, it still doesn’t say as to what might have contributed to the new challenge, in which case it’s important to note the excerpt from a report published on Forbes:

European countries that saw massive drops in new infections and coronavirus deaths after strict lockdowns in spring are beginning to report new, slight upticks in cases that have encouraged officials to consider implementing social distancing guidelines again.