Greece has ‘formally’ entered its second wave of the coronavirus pandemic

·

Greece is “formally” in the midst of a second wave of the coronavirus pandemic, one of the country’s top infectious disease experts has told The Guardian.

After recording its highest number of positive diagnoses ever, a record 203 cases on Sunday, the nation has reached a critical juncture in its ability to further contain the spread of the virus.

“We can say that Greece has formally entered a second wave of the epidemic. This is the point that we could win or lose the battle,” said Gkikas Magiorkinis, assistant professor of hygiene and epidemiology at Athens University.

The former Oxford University academic, among the expert scientists advising the government, forecasts cases climbing to 350 a day if the “dramatic increase” continued unabated.

Assistant Professor Gkikas Magiorkinis says Greece has ‘formally’ entered a second wave of the pandemic.

“Unless there is a change in the trend that we are seeing, we are likely to propose more measures along the lines we have seen in Poros,” he added referring to the Argo Saronic island where a surge in cases late last week prompted authorities to announce an unprecedented crackdown including the closures of clubs, bars and restaurants from 11pm.

RELATED: Greek island on lockdown after worrying Covid-19 outbreak.

The Greek Health Minister, Vasillis Kikilias, announced late on Monday further containment measures, warning “transmission of the virus is growing dangerously.”

The measures mainly affect travelling from certain countries, operations hours in the catering sector in several regional units, as well as cultural and other events such a concerts.

Until this month, Greek health officials appeared to have the epidemic under control but Magiorkinis said the abrupt rise, compounded by a sudden jump in the number requiring intubation, up from nine on 1 August to 22 last night, left no doubt that the highly contagious disease was working its way through society.

New precautionary measures were announced in Greece late on Monday.

Prior to additional precautionary measures being enforced last week, not least mask-wearing in all enclosed spaces, Greece had seen its effective reproductive number, or R number, reach 1.

“Our main concern is the degree to which this epidemic can stretch any health system,” he said.

“Greece currently has around 1,000 beds that can support COVID-19 patients … no health system, anywhere in the world, can cope effectively with a full epidemic resurgence. In the next two weeks we could have as many as 100 people intubated, almost matching the number we had at the height of the pandemic.”

Tourism has partly played a role for the sudden increase. But echoing government officials, Magiorkinis attributed the resurgence mostly to lax observance of hygiene protocols by Greeks, particularly younger generations who have flooded bars and beaches in recent weeks.

Cretan Convention - Web Banner

Advertisement

Share:

KEEP UP TO DATE WITH TGH

By subscribing you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

Advertisement

Latest News

44th National Cretan Federation Convention to be held in Sydney

The 44th National Cretan Federation Convention will be hosted by the Cretan Association of Sydney and NSW from in 2026.

Day three of the Global Summit of Hellenic Lawyers inspires deep reflection

The third day of the 1st Global Summit of Hellenic Lawyers unfolded at the Megaron Athens Concert Hall on Wednesday, July 9.

FECCA’s Peter Doukas OAM condemns violence against Jewish community in Australia

Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia (FECCA) condemns in unequivocal terms violence against the Jewish community.

Cyprus’ Andreas Grigoriou to visit Australia to mark 51st anniversary of Turkish invasion

Andreas Grigoriou will visit Australia this July to participate in events marking the 51st anniversary of the Turkish invasion of Cyprus.

Talia Kapetanellis exits Western Sydney Wanderers in team overhaul

Western Sydney Wanderers have confirmed the departure of nine players from their women’s team following the end of their A-League contracts.

You May Also Like

HACCI hosts meeting with Ambassador-Designate of Greece to Australia

The HACCI National Federation had a very warm and fruitful video meeting with Stavros Venizelos, Ambassador-Designate of Greece to Australia.

‘She looked at me and smiled’: Greek Australians remember Queen Elizabeth II

Greek Australians share their personal experiences with the late Queen Elizabeth during her 16 visits to Australia.

Greek government extends closure for places of worship

The Greek government have extended extended the closure of all places of worship in Greece through April 28, according to a decision released on Thursday.