Published 20:58 IST, January 9th 2021
UK warns 'act like you've got it' as cases rise, urges people to follow precautions
In the wake of heightening coronavirus pandemic, the British government has rolled out a series of stark advertisements as part of its new awareness drive.
In the wake of heightening coronavirus pandemic, the British government has rolled out a series of stark advertisements as part of its new awareness drive that warns people to "Act like you've got it". In a bid to make people follow all precautions properly, the adverts ask people to “act like” they’ve got the coronavirus. Hammered by the pandemic and resulting economic fallout, the UK is now pulling all stops to curb the spread of the respiratory infection.
COVID in UK
As per the latest tally by John Hopkins University, the country has reported a total of 2,966,244 cases out of who 79,965 have died. In addendum, a total of 1,325 died on January 8 within 28 days of a positive Covid test were recorded in the UK - the highest daily figure yet. With amplifying infection rate, the government now aims to spread its campaign via TV, Newspapers and Social media.
Meanwhile, France on January 8 detected at least two clusters of the mutated UK Covid variant, French Health Minister Olivier Véran announced. France’s border with the UK would remain shut "until further notice" as authorities investigate into the risk clusters of the mutant coronavirus and speed up the mass vaccination programme, he added. The government was aiming to vaccinate at least 1 million French people by the end of January, Véran told state broadcasters. Health experts sounded an alarm over the spread of virus variant, which the scientists found more contagious than the original SARS-CoV-2 strain. The UK variant cluster was detected across Hauts-de-Seine, near Paris, and in Ille-et-Vilaine in Brittany, according to sources of French broadcaster Connexion. The health authorities initiated rigorous contact tracing as 19 cases of COVID-19 infections of the UK variant were confirmed in France.
Updated 20:58 IST, January 9th 2021