BRASILIA, Feb 27 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Brazilian cities and states have been
imposing a new round of restrictions in a bid to contain a surge of Covid-19
cases threatening to overwhelm their already stretched hospitals.
Brazil, whose death toll passed 250,000 Thursday, is struggling to deal
with a rising tide of infections that has pushed intensive care units close
to the brink in a worrying number of flashpoints.
The country continues to have a piecemeal response to the new coronavirus, with individual cities and states setting their own policies in the face of far-right President Jair Bolsonaro’s repeated attacks on restrictive measures and face masks.
Sao Paulo state, population 40 million, this week ordered bars and
restaurants to close at 8 pm. Several cities have also imposed curfews.
The southeastern state of Parana closed non-essential businesses and
imposed an 8 pm to 5 am curfew from Friday.
Nearby Rio Grande do Sul adopted the same measure, starting Monday.
The capital, Brasilia, has ordered schools and all non-essential businesses
closed from Sunday.
The northeastern state of Bahia meanwhile closed non-essential retail
stores.
“Our health system is about to collapse,” Bahia Governor Rui Costa said
Thursday.
“Brazil is going to be mired in chaos in two weeks. The problem is getting
worse across the country…. We’ve never had a situation like this.”
Brazil registered its highest weekly death toll of the pandemic Friday: an
average of 1,153 deaths per day.
Health Minister Eduardo Pazuello said the “new phase” was the result of
new, more-contagious virus variants, such as the one that emerged in the
Amazon rainforest city of Manaus.
Experts say the issue goes beyond that.
“The problem isn’t the new variant, it’s that there’s no pandemic control
program,” epidemiologist Jose Urbaez said.
Brazil began vaccinating its 212 million people in mid-January, but is far
off-pace to meet Pazuello’s pledge of immunizing the entire country by the
end of the year.
Bolsonaro appeared unconcerned by the latest surge.
He shook hands with a crowd of supporters, with no face mask, during a
visit to the northeastern state of Ceara Friday.
The day before, he renewed his attacks on masks, insisting they cause “side
effects.” — NNN-AGENCIES