Spain, the Netherlands, Great Britain – the number of infections is rising again. Younger people in particular get Covid-19. Many are not vaccinated, but they don’t let the partying be taken away. A number of countries are now declaring war on the parties and taking back easing.
Summer, low incidences, bars open. It could all be as beautiful as it was in 2019. Back then, before Corona, when you could dance carefree through the night. But the virus is still dancing with you. In Topsy Turvey, a club in Karlsruhe, for example, where 34 people tested positive for Corona after a night of partying. Or at the Verknipt Festival in Utrecht, where almost 1,000 visitors are said to have been infected on the first weekend in July. No isolated cases. In several European countries, the number of infections has recently increased again – especially among the younger ones. Will it be dancing again soon?
The virus has long since picked up speed in Spain. The seven-day incidence is currently a whopping 258 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, in Catalonia even 579 – despite good vaccination rates. Almost 60 percent are already fully vaccinated. Of those over 40, 89.2 percent have already received at least one vaccination dose, 70.6 percent are fully vaccinated. But the virus finds its way. The younger generation, those who have not yet been vaccinated, are particularly affected by this new wave of corona.
In the under-30s, the incidence is over 1000, as the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” claims to have learned from the Spanish health authorities. The situation in the hotspot of Catalonia is even more serious, with an incidence of 2,400 among young people up to 19 years of age and around 3,000 among 20 to 29 year olds. In addition to the end of the mask requirement, one reason for the rapid spread of the delta variant is given: parties.
No partying
Those in charge therefore see a means of reducing the risk of infection to spoil the fun of partying. Lively, alcohol-heavy beach parties were recently celebrated on the beach in Barcelona. The city administration has now announced that it will spray the beaches with water. The wet sand is said to prevent people from settling there. In restaurants, bars, sports and cultural venues, the tattoo is again at 11.30 p.m. Adjustments are also being made in other Spanish regions. Valencia has already introduced a night curfew, which applies in particularly badly affected places. Such an application will also be examined in the Canaries.
A similar picture emerges in the Netherlands. There, too, the lights have been turned off in discos and clubs since Friday, and festivals are prohibited. According to the responsible office for health and the environment, RIVM, most of the infections took place where there was a celebration. The government had loosened corona measures early on and must now – somewhat contrite, Prime Minister Mark Rutte apologized – backtrack. Because the numbers are skyrocketing. The R-value in the country has climbed to 2.17. This is the highest value since the pandemic began in March last year, the RIVM announced to parliament in The Hague on Tuesday.
The seven-day incidence was put at around 270. As in Spain, the virus is primarily among 20 to 29 year olds. The curve depicting the infection rate of this group rose almost vertically at last. Last Saturday it reached a peak with a value of 156.2 new infections in 100,000 inhabitants, followed by the 10 to 19-year-olds with 81.1 new infections. These two groups are therefore by far the front runners.
Are the numbers of infections increasing? No matter!
And then there is England. On the island, the delta variant has been driving the number of infections up again for a long time. Around two thirds of the adult population is now fully vaccinated. And the incidence? Over 320. Nevertheless, they don’t want to hear about any more restrictions there. On July 19, all mandatory corona measures are to be lifted. Then not only the mask requirement, but also distance rules and registrations in the restaurants. The clubs open again. From then on, the celebrations will take place without any visitor limit. Experts had tried to postpone the easing in a letter that was published in. They called this a “dangerous and unethical experiment”. They warned of the danger for young people, those who were not vaccinated or who were half vaccinated. A look at the new infections also shows that most infections occur in the group of younger people between the ages of 12 and 24 years.
The numbers in the UK, the Netherlands and Spain are no surprise. Experts have long warned that if the number of cases rises again, the unvaccinated population groups in particular will be affected. “It is a fallacy to believe that we can afford a higher incidence if the vaccination rate continues to rise. Because the risk remains very high for those who have not been vaccinated,” health expert Karl Lauterbach told the Rheinische Post in June. And world doctors boss Frank Ulrich Montgomery also told the “editorial network Germany” with regard to the significantly more contagious Delta variant: “Those who do not get vaccinated will sooner or later become infected with the corona virus.”
In Germany, too, more young people are infected
A first trend can already be seen in Germany. Compared to other European countries, Germany is currently doing well with a seven-day incidence of 7.1, but the value has also increased slightly in this country for a week – although the number of infections is declining in almost all age groups. But not in all of them. Germany is no exception, among young adults between 20 and 29 years of age the number of infections is increasing, especially in the age group between 20 and 24 years. According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the seven-day incidence of them went up from 10 to 19. For comparison: among 75 to 84-year-olds, the value stagnates at 1.
“There is no reason to believe that the situation in Germany should develop substantially differently than in countries that are a few weeks ahead of us in terms of infection dynamics and have similar framework conditions in terms of vaccination rates, infection control measures and the climate,” said epidemiologist André Karch im Interview with the. There will probably also be an increased spread of infection here in those parts of the population where the vaccination rate is still relatively low and where contact behavior is currently intensifying the most, for example in the context of celebrations and other events with many people.
“If you want to counteract this without changing the framework conditions, it would be crucial to increase the vaccination rate among young people, who are particularly affected here,” says Karch. According to the RKI, the vaccination rate for 18 to 59 year olds is currently 41.8. In the under-18s, a meager 1.6. The Standing Vaccination Commission has still not issued a general vaccination recommendation for children aged 12 and over. The vaccination is only recommended for children and adolescents from 12 years of age with previous illnesses. A total of 43.7 percent in Germany are currently fully vaccinated.
