Tehran on Covid Alert

The raging Omicron variant of the coronavirus placed the capital Tehran on red alert as Covid hospitalizations increased and elementary schools across the province were temporarily ordered to close to curb transmission rates. 
Tehran’s Governor-General Mohsen Mansouri said on Wednesday that the Omicron variant had exploded throughout the country and in the capital, ISNA reported. 
“Over the past few days, the number of outpatient visits have risen by 78% and hospitalizations by 61%. These statistics are undoubtedly no good,” he said. 
The official ordered Tehran’s elementary schools to switch back to distance learning for the duration of the next week until further decisions are made. 
Tehran’s elementary schools had resumed in-person learning for less than a semester. Universities and high schools remain open but they could also be subject to closures if infection rates continue to spike. 
A member of the National Coronavirus Headquarters, Masoud Mardani, called for the closure of schools until the end of the Iranian year less than two months from now.
He noted, “Considering the rise in red cities, Covid restrictions should be imposed, including school closures and a ban on cultural, scientific and social gatherings.”
“We could return to bitter Covid days and more lockdown measures could be reinstated,” he added.
At least 42 cities across Iran have been placed on red alert and 142 have been color-coded as orange, or high-risk. 
Iran eased lockdown measures in autumn when the fifth wave of the pandemic, fueled by the Delta variant, subsided. 
The Omicron variant generally causes milder infections than previous strains. The highly mutated strain was first detected in Iran in late December in a resident of Tehran with recent travel history to the United Arab Emirates. 
 

Daily Infections Up Again

Daily coronavirus cases climbed by 3,000 to 38,000 on Wednesday, data collected by the Health Ministry showed, the highest daily record since late August. 
At this rate, daily Omicron cases will rise beyond the peak of the outbreak in summer when 50,000 tested positive for the virus in one day.
A senior official at Iran’s Civil Defense Organization, Rasoul Rahimi, warned that daily Covid cases could reach 100,000 by next week. 
“The spread of the sixth wave is concerning and unpredictable,” he said.
According to Health Minister Bahram Einollahi, the majority of those hospitalized in general wards or in intensive care units are the unvaccinated. 
“Vaccination can reduce the severity of the disease,” the health official said.
Only 18.1 million Iranians have been administered the booster shot. The government extended third shot eligibility to anyone over the age of 18 one day after Omicron was detected in the country. 
Overnight mortalities rose by nine to 59 on Wednesday. The death toll is expected to increase in the coming weeks as the virus spreads and hospitalizations surge.
An Omicron sub-variant has also been reported by the World Health Organization. It has already been detected in 57 countries around the world and it is said to be a little more infectious than the original Omicron.