Coronavirus

Group of repatriated Samoans quarantining in their homes

The Samoa Observer newspaper reported at least nine people had been allowed to quarantine at home.

One such person is historian Meleisea Malama Meleisea, who posted on Facebook that he was at home but had been visited by Police and Ministry of Health personnel. He said there were two security guards on duty around the clock, something he thought was "quite unnecessary".

Authorities said those who were allowed home had made their requests weeks ago and stringent isolation conditions had been placed on them.

They did not confirm how many were quarantining at home.

No new cases in New Zealand for 10th day in a row

In a statement, the Ministry of Health said:

Our total number of confirmed cases remains at 1,154, which is the number we report to the World Health Organization.

Our combined total of confirmed and probable cases remains at 1,504.

The number of recovered cases is unchanged at 1,481. Only one case remains active.

There are no additional deaths to report.

There is no one in New Zealand receiving hospital-level care for COVID-19.

     

Two people from Championship club test positive for Covid-19

The English Football League earlier said there were two positive cases out of more than 1,000 players and staff tested at the 24 second-tier clubs.

In a statement, Hull said the pair were asymptomatic and feeling no ill effects, but would self-isolate for seven days in line with EFL guidelines.

They will both be tested again at a later date.

The Tigers did not confirm whether the positive tests were from players or staff.

It comes after reports that Hull vice-chairman Ehab Allam wrote to the EFL twice to say the season should be voided.

Passenger flights confirmed to repatriate Samoan nationals from Auckland

A statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said the flights are scheduled on Friday 29 May and thereafter on 12 June 12 and 26 June as well as 9 July and 23 July.

The flight on 22 May is still operating as scheduled but as a cargo flight.

Further flights will be arranged until all those stranded abroad are brought home.

Connecting flights from other parts of the world through NZ will be subject to the lifting of border restrictions of the countries concerned.

First evidence jab can train immune system to fight against COVID-19

Moderna said neutralising antibodies were found in the first eight people who took part in their safety trials.

It also said the immune response was similar to that in people infected with the actual virus.

Larger trials to see whether the jab protects against infection are expected to start in July.

Work on a coronavirus vaccine has been taking place at unprecedented speed, with around 80 groups around the world working on them.

Moderna was the first to test an experimental vaccine, called mRNA-1273, in people.

James Blunt to host hospital radio show

"I was flown in to lower morale over the airwaves and hopefully take people's mind's off things while they're doing this incredible job," he joked.

The show will include "an array of feel-good tunes and loads of gratitude to those working in the frontlines".

It will reach 170 hospital stations.

The Greatest Hour will be broadcast by the Hospital Broadcast Associations, and a spokesperson said: "We are thrilled James wishes to thank NHS staff in this way.

"The show will make a fantastic addition to hospital radio schedules during this difficult time."

Wuhan draws up plans to test all 11 million residents

The plan appears to be in its early stages, with all districts in Wuhan told to submit details as to how testing could be done within 10 days.

It comes after Wuhan, where the virus first emerged, recorded six new cases over the weekend.

Prior to this, it had seen no new cases at all since 3 April.

Wuhan, which was in strict lockdown for 11 weeks, began re-opening on 8 April.

Number of global coronavirus cases rises above four million

The global death toll has also risen to above 277,000.

The US remains the worst-hit country, accounting for over a quarter of confirmed cases and a third of deaths.

Experts warn the true number of infections is likely to be far higher, with low testing rates in many countries skewing the data.

Daily death tolls are continuing to drop in some nations, including Spain, but there is concern that easing lockdown restrictions could lead to a "second wave" of infections.

Italy death toll tops 30,000, highest in EU

It reported 243 new fatalities on Friday - down from 274 the day before - taking the total to 30,201.

The daily number of confirmed new cases fell slightly to 1,327, bringing the total number of infections to 217,185.

Restrictions have begun to ease around the county, but one doctor described the city of Milan as a time "bomb," according to local media.

Italy has the third highest number of officially recorded coronavirus deaths in the world, after the United States and the UK - which is no longer a member of the EU.

India jobless numbers cross 120 million in April

India's unemployment rate is now at a record high of 27.1%, according to the Centre for Monitoring the Indian Economy (CMIE).

The new data shows India's unemployment figures are four times that of the US.

India doesn’t release official jobs data, but CMIE data is widely accepted.

The country has been in lockdown since 25 March to curb Covid-19 infections, causing mass layoffs and heavy job losses.

India currently has close to 50,000 reported infections.