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Mexican President & Country’s Richest Person have COVID

Carlos Slim and his family are worth an estimated $52bn (£38bn), according to Forbes magazine

Latin America’s richest man Carlos Slim has tested positive for Covid-19. The 80-year-old Mexican telecommunications billionaire was only showing “light symptoms” and was doing “very well”, his son wrote in a tweet.

It comes a day after Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, 67, also contracted the disease.

Mexico is among the world’s worst hit nations, with more than 1.7 million confirmed cases since the pandemic began, and over 150,000 deaths.

In Monday’s tweet, Mr Slim’s son Carlos Slim Domit wrote that his father was “making very good progress with Covid-19 after more than a week of minor symptoms”.

Carlos Slim had been seen at Mexico’s National institute of Nutrition for clinical analysis, the tweet added.

The tycoon and his family, who control Mexico’s largest telecoms provider America Movil, are worth an estimated $52bn (£38bn), according to Forbes magazine’s list in 2020.

Mexico continues to experience its worst moment since the pandemic reached the country last year, the BBC’s Mexico correspondent Will Grant reports. Hospitals in the capital Mexico City are overflowing, and the infection rate shows little sign of slowing down.

President López Obrador announced that an agreement had been reached with Russia for delivery of 24 million doses of the Sputnik V vaccine in the next two months – but in the short term the outlook for many Mexican families remains bleak, our correspondent says.

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Corona Latest: Deaths-UK 104,000; US 431,000; Brazil-217,700

The data from the UK’s national statisticians show there have been nearly 104,000 deaths since the pandemic began, the highest in Europe.

The figures, which go up to 15 January, are based on death certificates. The government’s daily figures rely on positive tests and are slightly lower.

It comes after a surge of cases in December, leaving the UK with one of the highest Covid death rates globally.

The Office for National Statistics and its counterparts in Scotland and Northern Ireland registered 7,776 deaths involving Covid in the most recent week.

Brazil Vaccine Rollout Stalls from Syringe Shortage

Brazil began its national vaccination programme a week ago, but there are already reports of serious problems in the roll-out.

Scientists say the country is close to running out of vaccine, syringes and other vital equipment, and they blame Jair Bolsonaro’s government for the shortcomings.

With a population of 212 million and sprawling geography including some extremely remote communities, Brazil has a mammoth task ahead.

Critics say the government is failing in the vaccine roll-out – the vice-president of the Brazilian Society for Immunology Isabella Ballalai blamed the “incompetency” of the health ministry.

There are also complaints of people being vaccinated out of turn.

Brazil currently has about six million doses of Chinese vaccine SinoVac, as well as two million of the Oxford-AstraZeneca jab.

More than 215,000 people have died in Brazil from Covid-19, with about 1,000 fatalities a day during this current wave of infections.

Biden Says COVID Deaths Will Pass 600,000 Before Declining

US President Joe Biden on Monday appeared to boost his goal for coronavirus vaccinations in his first 100 days in office, suggesting that the nation could soon be vaccinating 1.5 million Americans on average per day, AP reports.

Biden signalled his increasing bullishness on the pace of vaccinations after signing an executive order to boost government purchases from US manufacturers. It was among a flurry of moves by Biden during his first full week to show he’s taking swift action to heal an ailing economy as talks with Congress over a $1.9tn stimulus package showed few signs of progress.

Biden’s new vaccination target comes after he and his aides faced criticism for the 100 million goal in his first 100 days in office. The US has exceeded a pace of 1 million doses per day over the last week.

“I think we may be able to get that to … 1.5 million a day, rather than 1 million a day,” Biden said, “but we have to meet that goal of a million a day.”

Biden added that he expects widespread availability of the vaccines for Americans by spring, with the US “well on our way to herd immunity” necessary to end the pandemic by summer. Even so, he warned the nation was going to be “in this for a while, and could see between “600,000 and 660,000 deaths before we begin to turn the corner in a major way.”

A toll of 660,000 would be roughly equivalent to one in 500 Americans.

The current US death toll is 420,000 to 434,000 depending on the counting method.

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World COVID News

  • The UK will announce on Tuesday enforced quarantine for travellers arriving in the country from abroad, the broadcaster ITV reported, after prime minister Boris Johnson said that new coronavirus variants were prompting a review of border policy.
  • The Italian government on Monday sent a letter of formal notice to Pfizer calling on the drug company to respect its contractual commitments over its Covid-19 vaccine deliveries, the government special commissioner said.
  • Spain has recorded a record number of weekend cases, logging 93,822 infections between Friday and Monday, and 767 deaths. The latest statistics, published by the health ministry on Monday, make the last weekend the worst of the entire pandemic in terms of new cases. The number of cases of the virus per 100,ooo people over the past 14 days rose from 829 on Friday to 885 on Monday.
  • Rioting broke out for a third night in Dutch cities on Monday, initially linked to protests over a government decision to add a night time curfew to the Netherlands’ already strict lockdown.
  • The number of people hospitalised in France for Covid-19 rose by more than a 1,000 over the last two days, a trend unseen since November 16, and the number of patients in intensive care units for the disease exceeded 3,000 for the first time since December 9. The country’s Covid-19 death toll was up by 445, at 73,494, the world’s seventh highest, versus a rise of 172 on Sunday.
  • People in Iceland will soon receive vaccination certificates that could allow them to circumvent quarantine requirements. Iceland’s Directorate of Health said on Monday is in the process of finalising a system for Icelanders who have been fully vaccinated to obtain a Covid-19 vaccination certificate.
  • The World Health Organization is providing risk management advice to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Japanese authorities regarding the holding of the Tokyo Olympics, but the top priority is vaccinating health workers worldwide against Covid-19, its top emergency expert said.
  • Moderna has confirmed that its Covid-19 vaccine is expected to be protective against the two new South African and British strains of the virus, Reuters reports.
  • Some 8.8% of global working hours were lost in 2020 due to the pandemic, roughly four times the number lost in the 2009 financial crisis, but there are “tentative signs” of recovery, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) said.

Coronavirus Cases:

100,346,160

Deaths:

2,151,539

Recovered:

72,397,260

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Jamaica: 4 Hacked to Death in Grisly Homeless Murder Spree

Lionel Johnson, 47, lights a cigarette while sitting outside the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation temporary night shelter on Church Street. Deported from New York almost two decades ago, Johnson said he has no relatives here in Jamaica. He said he was shocked to hear about the brutal attacks on the homeless that left four dead and two injured.

 

The cold, haunting streets of Kingston were frozen with fear on Monday night as the capital’s nomads snuggled in corners or retreated to shelters in the aftermath of the grisly murders of four homeless men and the wounding of two others.

The macabre scenes spanned an arc of 9.5km (6.0 miles), stretching from the shopping strip of Half-Way Tree to downtown and further west near Bumper Hall.

Kingston Mayor Delroy Williams called the incidents a “stain” on the nation – a contrast to what he viewed as improving relations between the public and the homeless population.

While attacks, even deadly ones, on homeless persons occur occasionally, Jamaicans awoke to a scale of carnage to the city’s vulnerable as infamous as it was horrific.

The police said their probe into what appeared to be coordinated attacks was ongoing as they pursued several leads. Some of downtown’s homeless who spoke to journalists believe that one of their own might have been responsible for the bloodbath.

The investigations might also delve into questions of whether the savagery was the work of a serial killer. It is uncertain whether the acts were committed by a single person.

Barrington Hall bemoaned the murder of his soulmate and friend ‘Soljie’, one of the four men killed in the streets between Sunday night and Monday morning. Soljie met his demise on the outskirts of the civil and tax division of the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court – chilling irony of the injustice that befell him.

Hall, who has been homeless for years and regularly hangs out with Soljie, mused that he might have suffered a similarly bloody fate if he had slept near his pal on Sutton Street as usual.

“Dem say me miss it. I sleep out here. Me and she, too,” Hall told The Gleaner, referencing a nearby homeless woman.

“We talk about woman and thing and we smoke, enuh … . Sometimes I beg him a draw or I buy my own and ting, yuh know. Otherwise he was just a friend.”

Two deceased were found on Hanover Street in the Kingston Central Police Division and a fourth in Kingston West in the vicinity of the Mother White Bridge.

The injured men were found at a Constant Spring Road plaza and on Derrymore Road in the St Andrew Central Police Division.

A resident of central Kingston who lives in the area where the downtown murders occurred told The Gleaner on Monday that the attacks were an indictment on the State and the people of Jamaica. He was seen busily covering bloodstains with sawdust.

“Homeless people are being murdered on the streets and not being protected by the citizens and the State, especially in COVID time.

“If they were allowing people on the street over time, maybe somebody would see the act and try and stop it,” the man, who requested anonymity, said, hinting at the nightly islandwide curfews that run from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.

Another resident, Marlon Carter, was more concerned about the attacker and the motive.

He theorised that the modus operandi was consistent with the threats issued by a mentally ill man who roamed central Kingston.

“He was here before, but him come back about two weeks now. Every madman afraid of him. He is insane and threatens people before him attack,” he said.

The police could not confirm whether that person was a suspect.

Security personnel at the Poor Relief Department in Kingston indicated that arrangements were being made to accommodate as many homeless persons as possible overnight.

There are an estimated 2,000 homeless people in Jamaica, around 700 of them in Greater Kingston. The capital’s downtown region accounts for about 500 of them.

Lionel Johnson was among a few lonely souls who battled the chill on a Kingston sidewalk Monday night.

The 47-year-old deportee from the United States has no family and was fearful of what the night held for him on Church Street.

Earlier on Monday, Minister of Local Government and Rural Development Desmond McKenzie also condemned the attacks.

“While these are clearly horrific and criminal acts, I am left to wonder if this is the outcome of an outburst of madness. It challenges me to do even more for our homeless population,” McKenzie said in a statement.

Opposition Leader and PNP President Mark Golding called for immediate action to be taken by the Government in response to the killings.

“This morning’s (Monday’s) incidents are further evidence of the severity of the crisis of violence in our nation, where Jamaica has become a place in which our most vulnerable and defenceless can be so heartlessly attacked and murdered in our capital,” Golding said.

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S.A. Pres. Accuses Wealthy Nations of Hoarding COVID Vaccine

The president of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, has called on wealthy countries to stop hoarding excess Covid-19 vaccines, as he said the world needed to act together to fight the pandemic.

Ramaphosa told a virtual meeting of the World Economic Forum that he was concerned about “vaccine nationalism”.

“We need those who have hoarded the vaccines to release the vaccines so that other countries can have them,” Ramaphosa said in a special address on day two of the WEF’s annual meeting, which brings together politicians and wealthy tycoons.

He said: “The rich countries of the world went out, acquired large doses of vaccines from the developers and manufacturers of these vaccines and some countries have even gone beyond and acquired up to four times what their population needs. And that was aimed at hoarding these vaccines. And now this is being done to the exclusion of other countries in the world that most need this.”

Ramaphosa, who currently chairs the African Union, said African countries wanted access to vaccines as quickly as other nations.

South Africa’s Covid outbreak is the worst in Africa, with 1,417,537 cases confirmed since the start of the pandemic, and 41,117.

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Sydney endures hottest Australia Day since 1960

Sydney has endured its hottest Australia Day in 61 years as residents swelter through a summer heatwave.

Data from Weatherzone shows today is the hottest January 26 since 1960 after the mercury hit 37.1C at 12pm.

Sydney Airport recorded a temperature of 40.2C at 1pm.

"Sydney has also achieved its hottest spell in 10 years, averaging a maximum of 33.5 degrees for the last five days. Most of western Sydney west from Bankstown has been averaging 36-39 degrees but had a hotter five-day spell last summer," Sam Brown from Weatherzone said.

"The very hot airmass is being drawn from inland across the region ahead of a low pressure trough moving in from the west."

Thankfully today is forecast to be the last of a five-day heatwave.

"This Australia Day marks the last day of heatwave conditions which has scorched parts of NSW," the Bureau of Meterology's Agata Imielska said.

A maximum of 36C was predicted in the city today as thousands flocked to beaches and into the city for planned Invasion Day protests.

"It's not just a one-off day of heat, the sort of heat on its own wouldn't be a worry for most people but its been a spell of building heat and it's probably starting to take its toll for some people," meteorologist from Weatherzone Brett Dutschke told nine.com.au.

Elsewhere, parts of Queensland are also expected to swelter while a new wave of heat begins in Western Australia.

While a cool change has arrived for South Australia and Victoria, several states remain on high alert today.

"As that cool chance moves through we will see temperatures cooling and some light shower activity," Ms Imielska said.

"But the key message is today is still a dangerously hot day. It's really important people take the right protective actions."

Ambulance services have urged people to remain vigilant and look out for friends and relatives.

"We're getting an increased amount of activity as a result of heat related conditions, anything from heatstroke to collapse and the heat playing havoc with people with pre-existing conditions," NSW Ambulance Inspector Giles Buchanan said.

Dangerous surf conditions and crowded beaches are adding to the concerns of emergency services after more than 250 rescues were conducted on Sunday.

"We're having an increased number of calls to drownings, we've had 47 drownings or near drownings since Friday which is a devastating number," Mr Buchanan said.

New South Wales Surf Life Saving (NSWSLS) has predicted today to be "the most operationally challenging days that we've had in the last five years," NSWSLS member Matt Spooner said.

"The sun is hot, the surf up and surf lifesaving resources are being tested."

Surf conditions are remaining rough today due to strong winds around the NSW coast, particularly around the Sydney and Illawarra region.

The BoM has warned of "unpredictable conditions" with dangerous currents and large swell for several areas.

"For anyone considering going out on the water we are expecting those sea breezes to be stronger than usual," BoM meteorologist Agata Imielska said.

https://twitter.com/slsnsw/status/1353859913873723392

People have been warned to take extra precautions to protect themselves from heatwave conditions and dangerous surf.

"Our clear message to people on the coast is alcohol and swimming do not mix," Mr Buchanan said.

"Please, we want to make sure everyone comes home to their loved ones safe after a busy Australia Day and our life savers are not put in harms way."

Here's how the heat could impact your state this Australia Day:

New South Wales and ACT

Heatwave conditions are forecast to reach their peak across NSW today, with the hottest temperatures forecast in Sydney's west.

"Today will be the hottest day over the five day hot spell for the Sydney area," Mr Dutschke said.

"In Sydney far western suburbs get past 40C today, could get as hot as 41C in some places."

READ MORE: 'Busiest day of year' for beaches as heatwave scorches Australia Day

"Those temperatures will be as much as 10C or 11C above average, so it's noticeably hotter than normal."

"Given that it's likely to 35C today, it'll be a maximum average of at least 33C for the last five days and that's effectively going to be the hottest spell in ten years."

Penrith was 40C yesterday, looking to be 41C today. Richmond and Campbelltown are among many of the places are likely to get into the forties, along with much of northern NSW.

READ MORE: Sydney Opera House lights up for Australia Day

The central western slopes and plains will be above average today with daytime maximum temperatures between 35C and 40C in most parts.

Further inland, Dubbo is set to reach 38C just behind Bourke 39C.

Canberra will we well above average with sunny conditions and a top of 35C. There is a high chance of showers in the ACT this afternoon with the chance of a thunderstorm in the early evening.

Queensland

The heatwave has eased for most parts of the state however western Queensland is in for another day of severe heat.

"The hottest area will be Western Queensland where it's getting to into the low forties that includes Birsville and Windora."

Brisbane will be hot with a top of 30C however this is less than 1C above average for January.

Western Australia

While the heat is set to ease for the eastern parts of the country, it's only just beginning for the west with WA forecast to swelter through a low to moderate-intensity heatwave from today.

The hottest part of the country is expected to be Pilbara today where temperatures are set to soar above 43C.

"This heatwave its losing intensity and from here on its just going to be confined to northern NSW and Western Queensland for the next few days and become low intensity whereas in Western Australia, there's a heatwave just beginning in the north west of the state and that will extend down parts of the west coast over the next several days," Mr Dutschke said.

Perth is likely to dodge the extreme conditions this week however next weekend could bring temperatures well into the mid to high thirties.

https://twitter.com/weatherzone/status/1353574706058653698

South Australia and Victoria cool down

After four days of severe conditions, a southerly change has arrived in the south of the country causing temperatures to plummet.

"The heatwave is effectively over for South Australia and Victoria. A cooler change has come through and they've had some rain so it's well and truly over," Mr Dutschke said.

After temperatures reached around 37C on Sunday afternoon, the mercury reached 38C in some parts of Victoria by 10:30am on Monday.

In Melbourne, Laverton recorded the city's hottest temperature, reaching 41.5C at 12:40pm.

A cool change that began in the state's south-west was not expected to reach Melbourne until 5:00pm, but moved quickly to arrive much sooner than forecast.

The temperature at Avalon dropped by 10C in the space of an hour.

Cool and drizzly conditions are expected for Melbourne today with maximum temperature of 22C while Adelaide is unlikely to get hotter than 24C.