Welcome to Naked News, everyone! I’m Eila Adams. Well, it’s officially summer, and I don’t know about YOU, but pretty sure it’s going to be the WEIRDEST summer of my life, thanks to all the pandemic precautions in place. One thing I’m confident I’m NOT alone in, is wondering if we’re doing ENOUGH! So, let’s check in with our resident newshound Laura Desiree to find out what the NUMBERS have to say!
Eila, a lot of places are loosening restrictions, and a lot of PEOPLE are just getting bored and ignoring the restrictions altogether, and that’s not good news.
And what’s the fallout from all this close contact?
Well, experts have been warning us about the inevitable “second wave” of infections, and now that people are getting overconfident, it looks like it’s starting. Here’s the latest. On Sunday, the World Health Organization revealed the prior 24 hours had seen the BIGGEST single-day jump in COVID-19 cases. Over a hundred and eighty-three THOUSAND new cases were reported. Nearly fifty-five thousand of those were in Brazil, and nearly thirty-seven thousand were in the US. The big numbers are partly a factor of increased testing, but also because the coronavirus is still spreading and infecting people. Keep being careful, folks!
Despite the uptick, Spain has reopened its borders to EU countries after a three-month state of emergency. It’s now actively encouraging tourism with the government even launching a publicity campaign to boost confidence. Tourism makes up around twelve percent of Spain’s GDP. People arriving in Spain will have their temperatures checked and be asked for contact info, but won’t have to undergo a two-week quarantine. Is it too soon to say ‘too soon’?
Meanwhile, the cruise line industry has announced it’s extended the suspension of US cruise operations until at least September 15th. The existing “no-sail order” from the CDC expires July 24th, but an industry spokesperson said it was “increasingly clear that more time will be needed”, and that when they do resume US operations, they’ll have the “necessary protocols and systems in place” for passenger safety. They may also ELIMINATE the ever-present buffets! That shows just how serious they are! Don’t go away.
