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Madeira Situation Report Wednesday 29th September 2021  

By Daniel Fernandes 

Covid-19 update 

There were 62 new Covid-19 cases, 128 recoveries and no deaths from Covid-19 in Madeira since the previous Madeira Situation Report, which was published a week ago. The number of new Covid-19 cases halved in the last 7 days.

On Wednesday, there were 9 new Covid-19 cases (2 imported case from the UK & 7 cases of local transmission) and 20 recoveries. The number of patients in hospital remained the same as the day before (5 patients hospitalised, none in intensive care).

On Thursday, there were 14 new Covid-19 cases (3 imported cases – 2 from the UK and 1 from the Lisbon and Tagus Valley Region & 11 cases of local transmission) and 16 recoveries. The number of patients in hospital remained the same as the day before (5 patients hospitalised, none in intensive care).

On Friday, there were 12 new Covid-19 cases (1 imported case from the UK & 11 cases of local transmission) and 8recoveries. The number of patients in hospital increased to to 6, none of whom was in intensive care.

On Saturday, there were 11 new Covid-19 cases (1 imported case from Guadeloupe & 10 cases of local transmission) and 10 recoveries. The number of patients in hospital remained the same as the day before, although there was 1 patient in intensive care.

On Sunday, there were 9 new Covid-19 cases (3 imported cases from the UK & 5 cases of local transmission) and 8 recoveries.

On Monday, there were 14 new Covid-19 cases (1 imported case from the UK & 13 cases of local transmission) and 10 recoveries.

And on Tuesday, there were 21 new Covid-19 cases (3 imported cases – 1 from Costa Rica, 1 from the UK and 1 from the USA & 18 cases of local transmission) and 7 recoveries. The number of patients in hospital was 4, 1 of whom was in intensive care.

There were 105 active cases on Tuesday, of which 17 had been imported while the other 88 cases had been a result of local transmission. As of Tuesday, there had been 11,604 cases, 11,435 recoveries and 75 deaths.

On Tuesday, there were 19 patients in isolation in a dedicated hotel, 82 patients in isolation in their own accommodation and 4 patients in hospital, 1 of whom was in intensive care.

On the same day, there were 47 suspected cases under epidemiological investigation and analysis, which were all linked to patients who tested positive for Covid-19, to calls made to the SRS24 helpline, to referrals by SESARAM (Madeira Regional Health Service) and to airport screening.

There were 36,268 travellers under monitoring by the health authorities. Monitoring is being carried out through the ‘MadeiraSafe’ app. There were also 277 people, who had contact with positive cases, being monitored by the health authorities of several Madeira municipalities and of Porto Santo.

As for Covid-19 testing on passengers who had arrived at Funchal and Porto Santo airports, 311,697 samples had been collected until Tuesday (at 15h30).

As for Covid-19 rapid antigen tests, a total of 334,685 tests had been carried out by September 26th, 260,474 of which as part of mass testing campaigns.

By Tuesday, 635,743 samples from RT-PCR tests had been processed in the Autonomous Region of Madeira.

The SRS 24 helpline (Regional Health Service – 800 24 24 20) received 391 calls in the last 7 days. Overall, it had received 64,538 calls.

The Covid-19 mental health helpline (Linha de Acompanhamento Psicológico da Direção Regional de Saúde – 291 212 399 – available every day from 09h00 to 21h00), which was set up to provide emotional and mental support to anyone in Madeira received 5 calls in the last 7 days. Overall, it has received 3,866 calls.

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/22/9-novos-casos-de-coronavirus-20-recuperados-83-activos-76-suspeitos/

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/23/drs-diz-que-ha-14-novos-casos-de-covid-19-16-recuperados-e-81-suspeitos/

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/24/12-novos-casos-de-covid-19-8-recuperados-85-activos-47-suspeitos/

https://www.jm-madeira.pt/regiao/ver/142239/Madeira_regista_11_novos_casos_de_covid-19_e_10_recuperados_este_sabado 

https://www.jm-madeira.pt/regiao/ver/142371/Mais_9_casos_de_covid-19_na_Madeira 

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/27/covid-19-ha-hoje-14-novos-casos-na-ram/

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/28/21-novos-casos-de-covid-19-7-recuperados-47-suspeitos/

Opening hours of Covid-19 vaccination centres

The Covid-19 vaccine can be administered to all residents aged at least 12, at any vaccination centre in the Region.

Those wishing to receive more information on this may call the Covid-19 Vaccine hotline number (SRS VACINA COVID-19): 800 210 263

These are the opening hours of the Region’s Covid-19 vaccination centres in the following days:

– September 29th (TODAY)

Centro de Vacinação do Funchal (Funchal Vaccination Centre) – 09h:00-15h:00

Centro de Vacinação de São Vicente (São Vicente Vaccination Centre) – 13h:00-16h:00

– September 30th (Thursday)

Centro de Vacinação do Funchal (Funchal Vaccination Centre) – 13h:00-18h:00

Centro de Vacinação de Santa Cruz (Santa Cruz Vaccination Centre) – 09h:00-14h:00

– October 1st (Friday)

Centro de Vacinação do Funchal (Funchal Vaccination Centre) – 09h:00-15h:00

Centro de Vacinação da Ponta do Sol (Ponta do Sol Vaccination Centre) – 13h:00-16h:00

– October 2nd (Saturday)

Centro de Vacinação do Funchal (Funchal Vaccination Centre) – 09h:00-14h:00

Centro de Vacinação de Câmara de Lobos (Câmara de Lobos Vaccination Centre) – 09h:00-12h:00

https://www.jm-madeira.pt/regiao/ver/142237/Conheca_o_horario_dos_centros_de_vacinacao_para_os_proximos_dias

Covid-19 vaccination update

As of September 26th, a total of 380,842 Covid-19 vaccine doses (201,177 1st doses & 200,498

2nd doses/full vaccination) had been administered since the start of the campaign on December

31st. This means that on that day, 83% of the population had been administered the first vaccine dose while 81% of the population had been fully vaccinated.

It should be stressed that the Region is still awaiting for the validation of inoculations carried out on those (5,762) who have recovered from Covid-19. This will be crucial in determining the real proportion of fully vaccinated people. 

According to a real-time Covid-19 vaccination tracker, a total of 381,650 Coovid-19 vaccination doses have been administered in the Region.

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/28/380-842-vacinas-contra-a-covid-19-ja-administradas-na-ram/

https://web.sesaram.pt/COVID19_INFO

Power cut

Empresa de Electricidade da Madeira (Madeira power supplier) announced there will be power cuts due to scheduled work on the electricity supply network. It cannot be postponed and will take place in the following days and places:

FUNCHAL

September 28th – 09h00 to 11h30 (TODAY)

– Caminho do Esmeraldo (numbers 5 to 19)

– Rua de São Martinho (numbers 48 and 50)

– Ladeira do Moinho (numbers 2 to 9)

– Travessa do Moinho (numbers 2 to 23)

– Azinhaga Poço Barral

September 28th (TODAY) & September 30th – 09h00 to 11h30

– Estrada da Fundoa de Baixo (numbers 2 to 9)

– Estrada do Dr. João Abel Freitas (number 94)

– Estrada da Fundoa (number 7B)

– Vereda Fundoa de Baixo (numbers 1 to 14)

September 30th – 09h00 to 11h30

– Rua Dr. Fernando Rebelo (numbers 30 and 32)

– Rua Dr. Gastão de Deus Figueira (numbers 14 to 22)

– Rua do Lanço (numbers 1 to 9B)

– Travessa do Lanço (numbers 7C and 8)

– Travesa do Lombo da Boa Vista (numbers 4 and 4B)

October 1st – 00h00 to 05h00

– Avenida Arriaga (number 34)

– Marina (Sociedade de Publicidade Lda – PubliFunchal)

– Rua Conselheiro José Silvestre Ribeiro (number 47)

However, power could be restored during the time frame mentioned above. So, for safety purposes, it should be assumed that there will be power at any time during this period of time.

If necessary, customers can contact the free Customer Support Service number (Serviço de Apoio ao Cliente): 800 221 187

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/25/publicidade-o-fornecimento-de-energia-sera-interrompido-nos-dias-horas-e-locais-abaixo-indicados-anuncio-78-2021/

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/28/publicidade-o-fornecimento-de-energia-sera-interrompido-nos-dias-horas-e-locais-abaixo-indicados-anuncio-79-2021

 

Azores Situation Report Wednesday 29th September 2021

From our colleague in the Azores

Covid -19 

Since the last Situation Report a week ago on the 22nd September there have been 78 new cases of Covid-19 registered, two more than last week and 57 recoveries.

Current situation:

The archipelago currently has 122 active positive cases: 98 on the island of São Miguel, 12 on the island of Faial, eight on the island of Terceira and four on the island of Pico.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, 8,973 positive cases of COVID-19 have been diagnosed in the Azores and 8,632 people recovered from the disease. There were 42 deaths, 95 people who left the archipelago and 82 cases with history of previous cure. To date, 700,266 tests have been carried out in the archipelago to detect SARS-CoV-2 virus which causes the disease COVID-19.

The Rt rate in the region is still at 0.66

From 31st December 2020 to September 20th, 172,284 people in the Azores have been vaccinated with the first dose (72.8 per cent) and 186,398 with complete vaccination (78,8 per cent), under the Regional Vaccination Plan.

Bad Weather 

Five houses in the parishes of Mosteiros and Sete Cidades, on the island of São Miguel, were left uninhabitable because of heavy rain on Monday, Civil Protection has said.

The coordinator of Civil Protection for the municipality of Ponta Delgada, Pedro Azevedo, indicated that “five houses are not now habitable.”

“These people from the five houses are staying with relatives and it was not necessary to relocate them. The Social Action division in parallel with the Social Security Institute (ISSA) of the Azores has already carried out a case-by-case survey, housing by housing and everything is fine to be treated for further support to affected families with the synergy between the two entities”, he indicated.

Pedro Azevedo also referred that the most affected houses “have no structural damage”, that is, “are not at risk of collapse”, since the greatest damage is “at the level of contents, such as appliances and furniture”, and also “doors and windows”.

As for the cleaning work of houses, water lines and circulation routes in Mosteiros and Sete Cidades, they continue today “at a good pace”, he added.

The Civil Protection of the Azores registered on Monday 24th occurrences due to heavy rain on the island of São Miguel, namely “flooding of houses, blocked roads and dragging vehicles”, with no record of personal injury.

The parishes of Mosteiros and Sete Cidades, in the municipality of Ponta Delgada, were the most affected by bad weather.

In the case of Mosteiros, Pedro Azevedo told Lusa that “the two cars that were on the beach have already been removed”.

“There were two vehicles that were taken away by the force of the water, and in one of the vehicles there was a couple, who were eventually rescued by firefighters,” he said.

The municipal coordinator of Civil Protection for the municipality of Ponta Delgada also said that “the mud had already been removed from the interior of the houses” most affected.

“And, in parallel, all the cleaning of the road is being carried out next to the houses. And the priority is to restore the stream water line, where there is a lot of material to be removed”, he stressed, adding that there is still to be done “all a work to clean up the beach area” of Mosteiros.

Possible Drowning 

A man was found dead this morning on the beach at Água d’Alto, in Vila Franca do Campo on São Miguel.

According to information from the Captain of the Port of Ponta Delgada, a man of about 40 years was “spotted by surfers who were on the Água d’Alto beach and who quickly pulled him out of the water, but he was already dead.”

The alert was given to the PSP around 11:38 am and a lifeboat, the Maritime Police and the Vila Franca do Campo Fire Department immediately moved to the scene.

According to Commander Abrantes Horta, the body was transported to the Ponta Delgada morgue, but “has not yet been identified, nor is the cause of death known.”

Ship to Shore Transfer 

A crew member of a merchant ship, sailing off Terceira Island, was rescued on Monday.  He had severe abdominal pain and was needing medical assistance.

The alert was made at around 9:00 am, by a crew member of the merchant ship, and elements of the Praia da Vitória Lifeguard Station were immediately activated to the location, using a vessel from the Praia da Vitória port.

Alongside the merchant ship, the elements of the Life-Saving Station rescued and transported the victim, a 38-year-old man of Filipino nationality, to the port of Praia da Vitória, where elements of the Immediate Life Assistance Service (SIV) were waiting.  He was later transported to the hospital unit.

 

Algarve Situation Report Wednesday 29th September 2021

Paediatricians ask for more professionals to avoid emergency closure in Faro

The Paediatrics emergency service at the Hospital de Faro may be at risk of closing due to the lack of professionals, which is making it difficult to fill out the scales. The alert was made in a letter signed by 23 paediatricians and interns of this service, which was sent, on 14 September, both to the Board of Directors of the Hospital and University Centre of the Algarve (CHUA), and to the Government, and where more is requested to be hired professionals.

Photo Nuno Costa

The Board of Directors admits the problem, but says that “it has been making every effort to fill in the gaps”, being “committed to finding solutions, not only punctual, but essentially fundamental”.

This is the great request of paediatricians who, in this letter, which is accompanied by letters excusing responsibility, call for “quick solutions” to make up for the shortage of doctors.

Only in this way will it be possible to “protect the population of the Algarve from the eventual closure of the Emergency Service”, they say.

In recent months, they complain, there have been “serious problems” in filling out the scales, with a “very evident mismatch between the number of professionals, the shifts to be filled and the volume of users” who come to the emergency room.

This service receives, on average, 41,253 emergency episodes and 748 admissions to a short-term inpatient unit annually, in addition to 940 admissions to the ward.

Currently, 13 doctors work in the Paediatrics Emergency Department of the Hospital de Faro (6 of whom are over 55 years old, which means they can request a dispensation from the emergency room). Of the rest, three have a medical certificate.

4th Green Flag for the Algarve Hotel and Tourism School

The Algarve Hotel and Tourism School was once again awarded the Green Flag for the Eco-Schools project, for the fourth consecutive time since 2017, an international project that rewards and highlights the work carried out by schools based on environmental, sustainability and social responsibility issues.

In a year of distance learning, the school accepted the challenge of promoting “measures and actions taken with the Environment, Sustainability, Circular Economy, Healthy and Sustainable Food, Air and Outdoor Spaces in mind, the themes to be worked on that year”, highlights the EHTA in statement.

Marília Mendes and Janine Sieben, coordinators of the Eco-Schools project, addressed the differences in relation to previous years: “We started the school year certain that this would be a challenging year for the realization of projects that involve constant monitoring and monitoring. With teaching from a distance, the habit of approaching students in the corridors to remind them of the tasks or activities for which they are responsible had to be replaced by reminders, digital notifications that culminated in online meetings”.

For both, it was clear that “the final results – winning the 4th Green Flag – show that when there is a will, physical distance is not an obstacle”.

Algarve tourism focused on the resumption of professional events in the region

Turismo do Algarve is committed to demonstrating that the destination is prepared to once again receive all kinds of live events from the so-called Meeting Industry (MI).

Leveraging the recovery of this segment is a priority objective for the promotion of the region and, in this sense, the Algarve will be present, until the end of September, in three strategic actions, announced the Algarve Tourism Association.

One of these events is The Meetings Space Autumn, dedicated to doing business in the IM area. This year’s edition takes place in Copenhagen and has the presence of 55 buyers from different countries in Europe, including the United Kingdom and Germany, two of the most relevant markets for the region. Here, the Algarve Tourism Association (ATA) will not only have the opportunity to present the region’s offer to the various agents in the sector, but also to participate in various activities designed to encourage networking with these professionals.

ATA will also participate in Connections for All, an initiative exclusively aimed at travel professionals, which will take place in London, and which will be attended by around 100 buyers from the United Kingdom. Some tourist companies in the region will be present together with ATA, focusing on the Algarve’s offer in terms of products such as business tourism, luxury tourism or weddings.

At the Portugal Business Meetings, a workshop for professionals, exclusively aimed at the French market, which will take place in Cascais, ATA will have access to meetings with 27 buyers from the Meeting Industry.

Portugal Situation Report Wednesday 29th September 2021

Introduction

Good morning – The headlines yesterday was certainly the news that the mission of Vice Admiral Henrique Gouveia e Melo has come to an end and, this Tuesday, with almost 85% of the population vaccinated. A fantastic achievement in just 6 months since he took over as Head of the Task Force.

At that time there was great concern that Portugal was lagging behind in the acquisition of vaccines and they slow rate of vaccinations. To some extent this was a problem out with Portugal’s control, as the country is part of the EU which has controls over distribution. Because of the large number of British residents here, there were obvious comparisons to the rapid progress being made in the UK where the focus was clearly on administering as many people with the first dose, which saw these numbers increase quickly.

The implementation plan however, in Portugal in getting people fully vaccinated as soon as possible worked extremely well and although there were occasionally setbacks along the route, Portugal came through and is now in top place in the world in terms of completed vaccination rates. This is an incredible achievement and one that Portugal and, in particular the Vice Admiral and his team, should be rightly proud off.

At Safe Communities we were privileged to have a meeting with the Vice Admiral, during the roll out of the vaccinations, seeking his assistance in helping those who did not have utente numbers and dealing the application system where sometimes the “computer said no”. The online system was not the responsibility of the Task Force, but nevertheless he took on board our concerns in a most helpful and pragmatic way.

So we send our congratulation to the Vice Admiral for accomplishing this result, which has saved many from contracting the disease in the process. We wish him all the best for the future.

Related to this, are the very encouraging figures this week concerning the new cases of Covid-19, in particular the reduction in hospitalisations, those seriously affected in ICU and deaths. There is little doubt that this has been a result of the vaccinations and the general compliance by the population to the measures put in place. There were some who doubted the value of vaccinations and even tried on social media to discourage others from being inoculated – but the result shows that the vast majority took on board the official information and advice from Government. As the Prime Minister said “Country should be proud of civic adherence to the vaccination process”

The Prime Minister has stated that there will be no delay in commencing the 3rd phase of de-confinement as the 85% full vaccination target may only be reached in a week’s time. With effect from the 1st October therefore we are in this new phase of de-confinement and with the significant easing of measures including the re-opening of night club and bars we must continue to take care of ourselves and others. As the Prime Minister said last Thursday “the pandemic is under control but it is not yet over”.

We are expecting the Resolution of the Council of Ministers either today or tomorrow. This is likely to be lengthy due to the number of changes, but we will do our best to simplify when it is published.

On a different topic, yesterday the Judicial Police issued a phishing alert regarding emails that were being sent widely falsely using their name. We published this on our Facebook page. This is a good example of the lengths cyber criminals go to in order to obtain your personal data and access to your bank account! Always be cautious when receiving emails from those who you do not know and/or with offers too good to be true. Simply delete and do not reply. Do not click on any links.

Lastly all indications are the Critical Fire Period will come to an end as scheduled at 23.59 hours 30th September without an extension. However in the past the extensions have only been announced very close to the deadline. We will publish more on this tomorrow.

With that have a Safe Day.

Headlines

Country should be proud of civic adherence to the vaccination process”

“The country should be proud of the civic adherence of the Portuguese to the vaccination process” because without it “it would have been absolutely impossible to achieve these results” said the Prime Minister, António Costa, referring to the percentage reached of 84.03% of people vaccinated against Covid-19.

António Costa was speaking at the last meeting of the vaccination plan against Covid-19, in Oeiras, where the Minister of State and Presidency, Mariana Vieira da Silva, the Minister of National Defence, João Gomes Cravinho, and the Minister of Cheers, Feared Marta.

In his speech, the Prime Minister highlighted the work of Vice Admiral Gouveia e Melo, coordinator of the task force and the Armed Forces, whose enormous effort was decisive in combating the pandemic

The Prime Minister also said that the fact that Portugal “has acquired, over decades, a culture of vaccination”, contributed to making it the country in the world with the highest percentage of people vaccinated against Covid-19. He also highlighted the role of the European Union in the centralized purchase of vaccines, preventing a “huge dispute between Member States” from taking place.

Referring to the graphs presented by the task-force coordinator António Costa, he said that “the trajectory of decreasing incidence of the disease in Portugal, throughout the vaccination process” “does not leave the slightest doubt about the effectiveness” of vaccines.

The Prime Minister also highlighted the fact that Portugal is one of the most vaccine donor countries, whose percentage is around 10% of the total number of doses purchased.

Regarding a possible third dose, António Costa said that the Portuguese “can be calm and confident” since sufficient vaccines are already contracted for the entire population and, if the authorities decide that it is not necessary, the same surplus will be donated to countries of CPLP.

Before finishing, the Prime Minister also highlighted the work of local authorities and health professionals in the success of the Vaccination Plan.

“The last meters of the peak’s climb are always the most difficult”

The prime minister considered that the Portuguese case in terms of vaccination is a success. “It was extremely important that a vaccination plan was defined and that it was followed in detail”, he argued, saying that “vaccination was decisive for the reduction of the incidence and effective control of the pandemic”.

But he mentioned the few that still need to be vaccinated, about 340 thousand. “The last few meters of climbing the peak are always the most difficult”, he said.

Covid- 19 Situation Report 28th September 2021

Confirmed Cases: 1.067.775 (+ 600 / + 0.06 %)

Number of admitted: 399 (-21 /-5.00 %)

Number of ICU admitted: 74 (-5 /-6.33 %)

Deaths: 17.962 (+ 7 / + 0.04 %)

Recovered: 1.019.266 (+ 1331 / + 0.13 %)

Active cases: 30,547 (-738 / – 2.35%)

TRENDS

The number of infections is similar to last week’s daily average

With regard to deaths, the similar to last week’s daily average

This is the lowest number in ICU since 10th June 2021

Lowest number in hospital since 19th June 2021

Lowest number of active cases since 25th June 2021

Health

Restrictions will be lifted even if reaching the 85% target is ‘delayed’

The Prime Minister and the Minister of Health assured this Tuesday that the Government will maintain the lifting of the set of anti-covid-19 restrictions on October 1st, even if on that day the country has not reached the goal of 85% of citizens vaccinated

This position was conveyed by António Costa in statements to journalists, after questioning whether the country moves on October 1 to the third phase of the Government’s plan to lift restrictions even if Portugal has not reached 85% of the vaccinated population by a few tenths, with two doses against covid-19.

“The Government set October 1st. We are not at 85% of vaccines, but we are practically at that amount. In fact, today, Vice Admiral Gouveio e Melo [coordinator of the vaccination plan] did not specify the tenth in that the country is, “he replied.

For this reason, for the prime minister, “there are no further delays” in this process of lifting restrictions previously imposed because of the covid-19 pandemic.

The Government, according to António Costa, “will keep everything as planned for October 1st, renewing the appeal to people who have already taken the first dose, but who do not yet have the second, to take it.

“Take this second dose, in order to complete the vaccination plan as soon as possible,” he added.

Portugal ready to execute any decision on the third dose of the vaccine, guarantees Costa

The prime minister said this Tuesday that Portugal is prepared to carry out any technical and scientific decision taken on a possible third dose of the vaccine against covid-19, even if it is to cover the entire population.

António Costa said that the Government awaits the decisions that will be taken by the Directorate General of Health and the European Medicines Authority (EMA) on the issue of the third dose.

“The Portuguese can rest assured: What is possible at this moment to do so that any decision is possible is already done. In other words, the country has every margin of freedom to make the decision that is technically advisable to take,” he said.

According to the executive leader, if the technical decision is to vaccinate, Portugal “has already contracted a number of vaccines to vaccinate the entire population with the third dose”.

“For a majority of reasons, if the decision is only to vaccinate citizens over 65, we have these vaccines contracted. If this decision is not taken, Portugal will not destroy vaccines and will reinforce its international cooperation effort, in particular with countries of the Communities of Portuguese Language Countries”, he referred.

Those responsible for the Comércio in Matosinhos care home accused of 67 crimes of mistreatment

Those responsible for the home declined to hire doctors, nurses and staff, as well as buy equipment and hygiene products necessary for the well-being and health of users, according to the Public Ministry. This home registered, after the period covered by the indictment, an outbreak of covid-19 with more than 100 infected elderly people and 24 deaths.

The Public Ministry (MP) charged 67 crimes of mistreatment, 17 of them aggravated by resulting in death, against a former president and a service director at Lar do Comércio, in Matosinhos. In a process in which the institution itself is also accused, the MP says that the omission of care for elderly people admitted to the home between January 2015 and February 2020 is at stake.

The defendants then acted “with the awareness that the failure to take care of the users could cause their death, and that they were satisfied with this result, as happened in 17 of the users hospitalized there”, says the Regional Attorney General of Porto (PGR-P), in a summary of the accusation.

According to the MP, the individual defendants refused to hire the necessary doctors, employees and nurses, in addition to not buying equipment and furniture, hygiene and therapeutic products such as bedsores, anti-bedsore mattresses, diapers and protein supplements.

All of this “despite knowing that the institution had the economic means to do so”, “for reasons of reduction and containment of expenses” and “violating the functions of the positions they occupied”, says the indictment.

The Overseas Situation Report Tuesday 28 September 2021

by Mike Evans

“I think protecting your family and giving to them is so important. It’s the most important achievement.”  

– Natalia Vodianova

As we reach the end of another month with the pandemic this report is looking at the Caribbean. In the past week this area has seen big increases in new cases while across the world there has been a reduction in new cases..

For many the chance to visit the Caribbean is the holiday of a lifetime. At the moment though many people will be watching closely the rise in infections across this area. In the past week, according to the Worldometer.info charts 10 countries in the Caribbean occupy places in the top 50 countries where the infections in the last seven days have increased. This comes at a time where across the world the rate of infection compared to the previous week is down by 12% and the Caribbean is seeing a marked increase in cases.

To look in detail, we must of course recognise that these are countries with small populations and as such, any increases tend to look alarming as the percentages will be based on smaller numbers. However, this past week St Vincent & the Grenadines saw an 84% increase in new cases compared to the previous seven days and currently have a  seven day rate per 100,000 of population of 466. Anguilla, Dominica and Barbados follow with increases in cases of 74%,69% and 59% respectively for the past week and  7 day rates of 217, 608 and 329.4 respectively.

In the week where the UN 76th General Assembly took place the Prime Minister of St Vincent called for  everyone to put aside their differences and work in solidarity to tackle the pandemic.  “Globally, we have witnessed unacceptable vaccine nationalism; the politicization of the roll-out of the vaccines; and the roll-out of vaccines for the rich first and the poor afterwards” he lamented.

He spoke of vaccine hesitancy amongst his country’s population, underscoring the need to stop “anti-vax misinformation and disinformation” and warned that the pervasive inequalities that defined the pre-COVID political and socioeconomic order “must not become tomorrow’s nightmarish reality”.

Mr. Gonsalves also acknowledged “notable, and noble, work by some global institutions, such as the World Health Organization (WHO), World Bank, and COVAX Facility, to make vaccines more accessible to poor or marginalized countries”. He went on to say, It is true, too, though relatively late in day, that some rich countries in the North Atlantic (USA, Canada, and the United Kingdom) have delivered or agreed to deliver, freely, from their surpluses, vaccines to some less developed countries; we are very grateful. Still, though, some of these countries may be so slow in their promised deliveries that they may end up, embarrassingly, with expired doses of the vaccines running into several millions. It is timely to remind all of us that the noblest form of solidarity is to give not from the abundance or surplus that we may have but from the little that we possess; that is the lesson of the proverbial widow’s mite.

He also took a swipe at those in control; of the world’s media, not only have the ways of the old order, pre-COVID, tended, still, to guide powerful countries in their actions; so, too, the behemoths in global communications. These entities, enveloped in mega profits and profiteering, own and control the various internet platforms, with little or no public regulation, and have ignored or abandoned any real sense of responsibility for the anti-vax misinformation and disinformation which occupy cyberspace. As a consequence, real people die in multitudes across the world.

Meanwhile in Barbados where the rate of infection is increasing the Prime Minister, Mia Mottley disclosed that a number of Ghanain and Cuban nurses will soon arrive in Barbados to help with the epidemic. After a few weeks of Barbadians being mandated by law to be inside their homes by 6 pm on Sundays, as one of the strategies to control the rising cases amidst the Delta variant, Mottley said statistics are showing that the virus is not spreading in public spaces, but regrettably in the homes and neighbourhoods.

Speaking at a news conference in New York, Mottley called on Barbadians to play their role in keeping their households and communities safe.

“The Directive finishes tonight and in fact there will be a new directive as of tonight as well as a new proclamation from Her Excellency [Dame Sandra Mason], which will be issued and that has to be dealt with in 30 days in Parliament. So that is really the only major change for now.

“I pray that if we can hit the 20 000 target [of persons getting the COVID-19 vaccine] in the next two weeks, that the [9 pm] curfew would be extended until midnight. And we have said this all along. It is not a case of holding people to ransom, it is a case of reality of public health management and the capacity to be able to reduce the numbers as we go through our day,” she said.

Putting Barbados’ COVID-19 fight into context, Prime Minister Mottley said the country has had only 7, 200 positive COVID-19 cases in the past 20 months, which means that 270, 000 have not had it. But, Mottley said while the statistics are relatively low when compared to other countries, the situation is serious, considering that no one knows if they will contract the virus.

She said that while 49 per cent of Barbadians have had at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, she is bothered that children under 12-years-old are the ones getting the virus. Prime Minister Mottley said that reality stands that children in this age group have to be contracting the virus right in their homes.

Meanwhile across the Caribbean sea in Bermuda this small island country has seen a big rise in covid 19 infections in the past couple of weeks. Its current 7 day rate of infection per 100,000 is 1232.4. With a population of just under 62,000 people the total number of new cases in the past week was 764 an increase of 1% on the previous week. There are 1,612 active coronavirus cases, with 65 people in hospital, 14 of them in intensive care.

Kim Wilson, the health minister, said: “This is very sad news and I extend heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the deceased during this difficult time.” She added: “This outbreak is serious and I am sad to see where we are today. This is heartbreaking. “More people are getting quite sick, more people are being hospitalised and more are dying.”

Doctors yesterday joined forces in an impassioned plea to the public to get vaccinated. The Bermuda Medical Doctors’ Association said their “hearts were breaking” at the human cost of the pandemic. There has been some hesitancy in getting vaccinated with around 67% of the population having been fully vaccinated. The rise in cases has come about since the end of July 2021. Until them during the months of June and July there were very few daily cases and the total new cases was in single figures. On 26th July the daily figure went from 6 to 36 and has been increasing daily ever since to this week where they have over 1600 active cases.

Unvaccinated travellers can quarantine at home for 14 days, starting from Sunday, the health minister said yesterday.

Kim Wilson told MPs that people who arrive on the island without immunisation will wear electronic monitoring devices and red wristbands. They will be expected to test for the coronavirus only on arrival in Bermuda and on Day 14.

Ms Wilson said that the two-week quarantine in a Government approved facility was introduced on June 20 with an end date of September 30. The policy later changed so that unimmunised travellers could “test out” and complete part of their quarantine at any accommodation. Ms Wilson explained that in the latest outbreak of Covid-19 “local transmission of the disease far outweighs the incidence of the disease among travellers”.

As so many of these small island nations rely so much on tourism we can but hope that they are able to get the rate of infections under control and start to lead a more normal life.

Until the next time Stay Safe.

Total Cases Worldwide – 232,728,390

Total Deaths Worldwide – 4,764,298

Total Recovered Worldwide – 209,369,824

Total Active Cases Worldwide – 18,594,268 (8.0 % of the total cases)

Total Closed Cases Worldwide – 214,134,122 

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

 

The Overseas Situation Report Friday 24 September 2021

by Mike Evans

“Truth is like the sun. You can shut it out for a long time. But it ain’t going away.”

– Author unknown

Throughout the pandemic there has been a lot written about the accuracy of figures given by countries, institutions and individuals from all across the world. Social Media has been accused of allowing fake news to infiltrate the real news and this in itself has led to a massive increase in people’s perception of what is real and what is not.

There are a number of websites which have been providing information regarding the statistics for the pandemic and on the whole these have been as accurate as they can be given the figures they are provided. They can only provide accurate information if the statistics they are supplied with are accurate and it is obvious as time moves on that not every country is being truthful with the situation in their respective countries. In this report I am relaying to you one such story which illustrates this issue perfectly.

Turkmenistan is a country in Central Asia bordered by the Caspian Sea and largely covered by the Karakum Desert. It’s known for archaeological ruins including those at Nisa and Merv, major stops along the ancient trade route the Silk Road. Ashgabat, the capital, was rebuilt in Soviet style in the mid-20th century and is filled with grand monuments honoring former president Saparmurat Niyazov. Turkmenistan is one of only a handful of countries, including North Korea, which says it has no coronavirus cases. But reports suggest it is experiencing its third and possibly strongest wave of Covid-19.

Here is one story that describes this issue perfectly and tragically for many in the country.

Sayahat Kurbanov was suffocating. He gasped for air as if he were running a marathon, the pain in his chest unbearable. He had all the symptoms of coronavirus. The problem was he was in Turkmenistan, where patients like him officially do not exist.When he called an ambulance last month the doctor told him he had pneumonia and should go to hospital urgently. Mr Kurbanov (not his real name) knew that the country’s doctors referred to Covid cases as pneumonia. On the way to the hospital Mr Kurbanov managed to call the clinic where he had done a Covid test a few days earlier. “It is positive,” he heard a quiet voice say. “What is positive?” he shouted, “is it Covid?” “Yes,” came the answer. Only later did he discover they never give you a piece of paper if you test positive in Turkmenistan.

The first hospital they went to refused to take him because it was full. “I nearly died on the way,” Mr Kurbanov said. “The lack of air… the virus progressed so quickly. I started hitting the window and shouted ‘Please stop, I can’t breathe’. They gave me oxygen but it didn’t help much.”

The next hospital also refused to admit him, this time because it was banned from taking in patients who were not registered in the capital, Ashgabat. “I started panicking. I asked the doctor, ‘What am I supposed to do? Die here?'” He called a doctor he knew and begged for help. After numerous phone calls and heated conversations he was eventually admitted. His condition did not change for five days.”I couldn’t inhale – it was as if everything inside me was glued. I had panic attacks since I couldn’t breathe. It was as if I had dived underwater and couldn’t surface.”He shouted for nurses to give him something to alleviate the pain. Getting into a hospital is not always enough to receive treatment in Turkmenistan, Mr Kurbanov says. Doctors routinely ignore patients and nurses don’t check on them unless someone high up calls the right people.

The hospital was also badly understaffed with a couple of nurses looking after more than 60 people. There were times when a cleaning lady administered injections, he said.

Nurses told him stories of patients dying in front of them due to lack of ventilators and oxygen. Having spent over $1500 on medicines and bribes Mr Kurbanov was eventually discharged after 10 days.

Foreign based Turkmen media are reporting on the third wave of infections but almost everyone inside the country are too scared to talk about it.The Turkmen.news website has identified at least 60 people who have died from Covid 19 since the start of the pandemic. Various media reports and independent sources indicate that Turkmenistan is being hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. Yet Turkmen officials continue to say there have not been any incidents of COVID-19 in the country.

But the cases of two diplomats assigned to Turkmenistan suggest the virus is indeed there — though in both cases their governments remain quiet. Such silence helps allow Turkmen authorities to continue spouting the official line that the country is somehow unaffected by the global pandemic.

Guzide Uchkun is the widow of Kemal Uchkun, a Turkish diplomat who died in a hospital in Turkmenistan on July 7. She recently filed a lawsuit against Turkey’s ambassador to Turkmenistan, Togan Oral, and several other government officials for their failure to transport her husband from Turkmenistan to Turkey for proper medical treatment. Starting in January 2018, Kemal Uchkun was stationed at the Turkish Embassy in Turkmenistan as an adviser on religious affairs.

On June 27, 2020, Uchkun was admitted to a hospital. His symptoms were breathing problems, heavy coughing, and a fever, signs associated with the coronavirus. Doctors treated him for pneumonia.

Guzide Uchkun says Turkmen doctors treated her husband with antibiotics, which don’t work against viruses. Turkish doctors said the X-rays they received of Uchkun from Turkmenistan indicated there was a better than 90 percent chance he had COVID-19. Guzide’s lawyer, Ahmet Basci, told Azatlyk that the embalming of Uchkun’s body was done in Turkmenistan, so a subsequent autopsy in Turkey was unable to determine if the diplomat’s death was due to the coronavirus.

But Basci said Uchkun’s family showed the chest X-rays to other Turkish forensic experts after his death. Basci said those experts had no doubt that Uchkun had died of COVID-19 and that he probably would have survived if he had been brought back to Turkey.

“I pleaded [with Turkish authorities] to send a medical transport plane or any kind of plane to bring my husband back to Turkey,” Guzide told the Turkish newspaper Sozcu. “I filled out applications and provided all the necessary documents every day until his death.”

Turkmen officials did not give official permission for a Turkish plane to come to Ashgabat, which has not been accepting international flights since March, until after Uchkun died on July 7.

Publicly, Turkish authorities have still not criticized Turkmenistan’s reluctance to allow an ill diplomat to be evacuated home for treatment, although it seems cause for some outrage. Ankara has also not said anything that might question Turkmenistan’s claim of being free of the coronavirus.

Guzide Uchkun also plans to file a lawsuit against Turkmen authorities, charging them with negligence and obstruction.

Britain’s ambassador to Turkmenistan, Hugh Philpott, is known for promoting the culture of Central Asian countries where he has been stationed, sometimes through song.

Philpott performed a Tajik song when he was ambassador to Tajikistan and recently sang a Turkmen tune. On December 16, Philpott tweeted that he was “recuperating from a virus trending in the ‘physical world.” Philpott did not say where he was recuperating, but he has been in Turkmenistan since returning from a trip abroad in late September. The British government has not publicly commented on Philpott’s condition or where he contracted the virus.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has also not confirmed that the coronavirus is in Turkmenistan, despite making an official visit. The WHO sent a team to Turkmenistan in July after more than two months of delays caused, apparently, by Turkmen authorities’ procrastination in giving official permission.

The WHO team was guided around Turkmenistan and afterward could only say they had not seen any clear evidence of the coronavirus in Turkmenistan, though they did express concern at “reports of increased cases of acute respiratory disease or pneumonia of unknown cause” and advised “activating the critical public-health measures in Turkmenistan, as if COVID-19 was circulating.”

The team also recommended that “surveillance and testing systems are scaled up, and that samples are sent to WHO reference laboratories for confirmed testing.”

Eurasianet.org contacted the WHO about that and in December received a reply that “unfortunately, due to many travel restrictions currently in place, this has as yet not been possible.”

Given the Turkmen government’s penchant for exaggeration, if not outright lying, it is not surprising that officials there continue to cling to their narrative that the coronavirus has been prevented from entering Turkmenistan. It is somewhat surprising that international organizations and individual governments are not challenging this claim by the Turkmen government, especially considering the heavy impact it is having on the citizens of Turkmenistan.

Until the next time Stay Safe.

Total Cases Worldwide – 231,087,421

Total Deaths Worldwide – 4,735,968

Total Recovered Worldwide – 207,765,666

Total Active Cases Worldwide – 18,585,787  (8.0 % of the total cases)

Total Closed Cases Worldwide – 212,501,634 

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

 

Madeira Situation Report Wednesday 22nd September 2021 

By Daniel Fernandas

Covid-19 update 

There were 62 new Covid-19 cases, 128 recoveries and no deaths from Covid-19 in Madeira since the previous Madeira Situation Report, which was published a week ago. The number of new Covid-19 cases halved in the last 7 days. 

On Wednesday, there were 12 new Covid-19 cases (1 imported case from the UK & 11 cases of local transmission) and 15 recoveries. The number of patients in hospital remained the same as the day before (5 patients hospitalised, none in intensive care).

On Thursday, there were 7 new Covid-19 cases (2 imported cases from the UK & 5 cases of local transmission) and 22 recoveries. The number of patients in hospital increased to 6, none of whom in intensive care.

On Friday, there were 13 new Covid-19 cases (8 imported cases – 3 from the UK, 2 from Spain, 2 from Northern Region and 1 from the Lisbon and Tagus Valley Region & 5 cases of local transmission) and 24 recoveries. The number of patients in hospital decreased to 5, none of whom in intensive care. 

On Saturday, there were 13 new Covid-19 cases (all cases of local transmission) and 19 recoveries. The number of patients in hospital decreased to 4, none of whom was in intensive care.

On Sunday, there were 8 new Covid-19 cases (4 imported cases – 3 from the UK and 1 from Brazil & 4 cases of local transmission) and 10 recoveries. The number of patients in hospital decreased to 3. 

On Monday, there were 4 new Covid-19 cases (all cases of local transmission) and 22 recoveries. The number of patients in hospital increased to 4, none of whom in intensive care. 

And on Tuesday, there were 5 new Covid-19 cases (1 imported case from the Lisbon and Tagus Valley Region & 4cases of local transmission) and 16 recoveries. The number of patients in hospital increased to 5, none of whom were in intensive care.

There were 94 active cases on Tuesday, of which 24 had been imported while the other 70 cases had been a result of local transmission. As of Tuesday, there had been 11,604 cases, 11,435 recoveries and 75 deaths.  

On Tuesday, there were 29 patients in isolation in a dedicated hotel, 60 patients in isolation in their own accommodation and 5 patients in hospital, none of whom were in intensive care. 

On the same day, there were 51 suspected cases under epidemiological investigation and analysis, which were all linked to patients who tested positive for Covid-19, to calls made to the SRS24 helpline, to referrals by SESARAM (Madeira Regional Health Service) and to airport screening. 

There were 39,575 travellers under monitoring by the health authorities. Monitoring is being carried out through the ‘MadeiraSafe’ app. There were also 238 people, who had contact with positive cases, being monitored by the health authorities of several Madeira municipalities and of Porto Santo. 

As for Covid-19 testing on passengers who had arrived at Funchal and Porto Santo airports, 309,348 samples had been collected until Tuesday (at 15h30).

As for Covid-19 rapid antigen tests, a total of 312,695 tests had been carried out by September 19th, 238,484 of which as part of mass testing campaigns.

By Tuesday, 625,288 samples from RT-PCR tests had been processed in the Autonomous Region of Madeira.

The SRS 24 helpline (Regional Health Service – 800 24 24 20) received 431 calls in the last 7 days. Overall, it had received 64,147 calls. 

The Covid-19 mental health helpline (Linha de Acompanhamento Psicológico da Direção Regional de Saúde – 291 212 399 – available every day from 09h00 to 21h00), which was set up to provide emotional and mental support to anyone in Madeira received 10 calls in the last 7 days. Overall, it has received 3,861 calls. 

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/15/12-novos-casos-de-covid-19-73-suspeitos-15-recuperados/

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/16/7-casos-de-covid-19-22-recuperados-72-suspeitos-142-activos/

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/17/13-novos-casos-de-covid-19-24-recuperados-131-activos-133-suspeitos/

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/18/13-novos-casos-de-covid-19-19-recuperados-125-activos-72-suspeitos/ 

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/19/8-novos-casos-de-covid-19-10-recuperados-51-suspeitos-123-activos/ 

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/20/4-novos-casos-de-covid-19-22-recuperados-65-suspeitos-105-activos/

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/21/5-novos-casos-de-covid-19-16-recuperados-51-suspeitos-94-activos/

Covid-19 vaccination update

On September 18th, a shipment of 23,400 Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine doses arrived in Funchal. 

According to a real-time Covid-19 vaccination tracker, 83% of the Region’s population have been administered 1 vaccine dose while 80% of the population have been fully vaccinated. A total of 378,948 Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered in the Region.

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/18/chegaram-mais-23-400-vacinas-da-pfizer-a-regiao/

https://web.sesaram.pt/COVID19_INFO

Madeira Regional Government offer to send help to the Canary Islands

Miguel Albuquerque (President of the Madeira Regional Government) sent a letter to Ángel Víctor Torres (his Canary Islands counterpart) to express his and his Government’s full solidarity in the wake of the La Palma volcanic eruption. He also offered to send whatever assistance is needed. Several Civil Protection teams have been made available for deployment. These include a Mountain Search and Rescue brigade, paramedic teams (including doctors and nurses), and a helicopter carrying a multi-mission team.

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/20/governo-da-madeira-disponibiliza-meios-para-ajudar-canarias/

Free wireless internet in Porto Santo 

The Municipality of Calheta has set up free wireless internet in several municipal public spaces, as a result of a successful application for the project “WIFI4EU – Free wifi for Europeans”, a scheme financed by the European Union to enable citizens and visitors in to have free and secure wireless internet access in public areas such as parks, squares, and public buildings.

A certified company set up Wi-Fi hotspots in the following places in Porto Santo:

– Praça do Município 

– Assembleia Municipal (municipal assembly)

– Junta de Freguesia (town hall)

– Praça do Barqueiro

– Balneários municipais (municipal changing rooms)

– Padrão dos Descobrimentos 

– Alameda do Infante 

– Beach (next to Bar do Henrique) 

– Praça de Táxis (Cab rank) 

– Jardim do Posto de Turismo (Garden at the Tourism Office) 

– Centro de Saúde (Health Centre)

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/20/porto-santo-tem-ja-varios-pontos-de-wi-fi-gratuita-em-espacos-publicos/

Power cut

Empresa de Electricidade da Madeira (Madeira power supplier) announced there will be power cuts due to scheduled work on the electricity supply network. It cannot be postponed and will take place in the following days and places: 

FUNCHAL

September 22nd – 09h00 to 11h30 (TODAY) 

– Travessa João Carlos Gomes

CAMPANÁRIO 

September 22nd – 09h00 to 12h00 (TODAY)

– Furnas

– Lapa

– Estrada da Amoreira (numbers 3 to 33)

– Estrada da Lapa (until Bar Marujo)

– Estrada Dr. Francisco Justino Gonçalves (numbers 2 and 14)

– Caminho da Furna

– Amoreiras

FUNCHAL

September 24th – 00h00 to 07h00 

– Estrada Comandante Camacho de Freitas (number 82)

– Rua Encosta Pico dos Barcelos; Galeria and Bar

– Urbanização do Pico dos Barcelos

However, power could be restored during the time frame mentioned above. So, for safety purposes, it should be assumed that there will be power at any time during this period of time.

If necessary, customers can contact the free Customer Support Service number (Serviço de Apoio ao Cliente): 800 221 187.

https://funchalnoticias.net/2021/09/18/publicidade-o-fornecimento-de-energia-sera-interrompido-nos-dias-horas-e-locais-abaixo-indicados-anuncio-77-2021/

 

 

Portugal Situation Report Wednesday 22nd September 2021

Introduction

Covid-19 has taken a bit of a back seat over the last few days, for good reasons; that is the continued decrease in new cases, in deaths, hospitalisations, those in ICU and active cases. As such there is generally less news concerning this topic.

Looking forward with this good news, it will be interesting to see tomorrow whether the Council of Ministers make any announcements, ahead of the Situation of Contingency which is due to expire on 30th September at 23.59 hrs. Very little news on this subject so far.

The main news over the last few days has certainly been the volcanic eruption at La Palma on the Canary Islands, and secondly the forthcoming municipal elections. Regarding the former we have been monitoring and reporting on Facebook the situation several days before the eruption, which came a little earlier than some experts predicted.

Following the eruption we created a major incident page on our website which we are keeping up to date with the latest news, plus photos and charts. As far as the impact on Portugal is concerned, the main one is the potential of ash reaching Madeira, which the latest news suggests is now low, at least for the next few days.

There have been suggestions circulating on social media of a tsunami that have been based on a worst case scenario. However this has not been stated as a risk by any of the official seismic organisations, international or local, that are closely involved in monitoring developments.

Conversely, according to experts monitoring the situation, earlier yesterday the rate of deformation of the ground seems to slowly be decreasing, which might be a sign that the eruption is stabilizing. In addition, earthquake activity has decreased.” However last night they reported that there are concerns that the eruption is still far from stable and yet more vents, possibly further north could open up. Inflation has been continuing and reached 30 cm in places, sign that magma is still pressurizing and accumulating underground. This is also shown by continuing earthquake activity. Although much weaker than before the eruption, it remains significant.

The Ministry of Internal Administration is closely following this eruption, with special care for the two dimensions that, at this stage, are most relevant to Portugal: an eventual intervention for the withdrawal of Portuguese citizens, support for the Spanish authorities, and the evolution and displacement of the ash cloud [mainly towards the Portuguese archipelago of Madeira], as well as other related phenomena”, according to the MAI in a statement.

Details of the La Palma volcanic eruption can be downloaded from our major incident page here: https://www.safecommunitiesportugal.com/la-palma-canary-islands-volcanic-eruption/

On another topic yesterday Brits in Portugal posted very useful information that SEF have told them that they will imminently start contacting those of you who have sent a request for residency under the Withdrawal Agreement through the dedicated Brexit email.

If you were living in Portugal on or before 31 December 2020, but have not yet registered for residency, please send an email to brexit@sef.pt with a copy of your passport, proof of address and proof you were living in Portugal before the end of last year. If it may affect you then please visit their page here: https://www.facebook.com/BritsInPortugal

Turning to rural fires, on Monday we were without the rural fire risk chart, due to a technical issue affecting both ICNF and IPMA chart production. We contacted ICNF in the morning and it was repaired in the evening.

We are now less than 10 days away from the end of the Critical Fire Period so it will be interesting to see whether or not there is any extension, as has happened in some recent years. We have also seen in previous years, such as 2017, major rural fires in October. Recently the wet weather in some parts of the country has resulted in a decrease in fires and looking ahead over the next few days we see from 23rd to 25th September at least, most of the mainland at low risk. No doubt Government will take into account the good news released yesterday that this year until September 20th, has the lowest number of fires and the second lowest value of burnt area, since 2011

With that good news have a Safe Day

 

Covid-19 DGS Situation Report

Confirmed Cases: 1.063.100 (+ 780 / + 0.07 %)

Number of admitted: 455 (-16 /-3.40 %)

Number of ICU admitted: 78 (-4 /-4.88 %)

Deaths: 17.925 (+ 11 / + 0.06 %)

Recovered: 1.012.577 (+ 1805 / + 0.18 %)

Active cases: 32,598 (-1036 / – 3.07%)

Fourth consecutive day under 1000 cases and is the best Tuesday since June 15th (there were then 973 cases).

The number of deaths is the highest in the last 15 days – the average in September is 8.7 deaths daily.

Admissions are at the same level as on Sunday, when the lowest level since June 27 was recorded. The number of patients in intensive care units is the lowest since June 15th.

Large decrease in active cases.

Health

Covid-19: Task Force calls on users without a second dose of vaccine to use “open house” modality

Lisbon, September 21, 2020 (Lusa) – The task force that coordinates the vaccination process against covid-19 called today for all people who have not yet received the second dose to go to any vaccination center, using the modality “open house”.

“Currently, with a slower pace of vaccination (since the majority of the population is already vaccinated) and greater availability of vaccines, the second doses can take place in a vaccination center different from the place where the first dose was administered. Go to a center and get vaccinated, Covid-19 vaccines are safe and effective. Only together and with a sense of individual and community responsibility will it be possible to defeat this virus”, says a note from the ‘task force’, which recalls that the “Open House” modality is working without restrictions on age groups or place of residence of users.

Open house schedules are available at https://covid19.min-saude.pt/casa_aberta/

According to the vaccination report released today by the General Directorate of Health (DGS), 83% of the population has already completed vaccination against the SARS-CoV-2 virus and 86% – almost 8.9 million people – already have at least one dose of the vaccine. 

Covid-19: Pfizer says vaccine provokes strong immune response in children between 5 and 11 years old

The Pfizer/BioNTech covid-19 vaccine has been shown to be safe and highly effective in young children, ages five to 11, the companies announced this Monday morning.

The data must be reviewed by the drug regulatory authority in the United States (Food and Drug Administration, FDA) before the children can be inoculated, according to the US press. Pfizer and Biotech plan to ask FDA permission to use the vaccine on children in these age groups later this month.

Pfizer and Biotech announced the results in a statement that did not include very detailed data about the trial. The results have not yet been peer reviewed or published in a scientific journal.

The trial included 2268 children between the ages of five and 11 years. Of these, two-thirds received two doses of the vaccine three weeks apart. The remainder were inoculated with two doses of placebo.

Children who received the vaccine produced a strong immune response, similar to the antibody levels seen in previous trials of participants aged 16 to 25. But children aged five to 11 achieved this response with just 10 micrograms of the vaccine — one-third of the dose given to older children and adults.

 

Other News

GNR seized half a ton of tobacco leaf in Maia

The Tax Action Unit, through the Tax Action Detachment of the Port of GNR, seized, in a warehouse in Maia, half a ton of tobacco leaf, with a capacity to produce more than 500 thousand cigarettes.

As part of an investigation aimed at controlling the movement of goods, the Guard soldiers complied with a non-household search warrant in a warehouse, where they detected about half a ton of tobacco leaf in an unauthorized place and without customs control.

According to the GNR, if it had been introduced for consumption through marginal commercial circuits, “the tobacco seized would have caused loss to the State, in the context of the Special Tax on Tobacco Consumption, of approximately 86 thousand euros”.

A 34-year-old man was made a defendant and subject to a Term of Identity and Residence.

 

Algarve Situation Report Wednesday 22 September 2021 

International team of scientists seeks unprecedented information on tsunamis in Paul do Martinhal

“Do you see that more yellowish sand there, just above the level where the water is now? It is the deposit of the tsunami of 1755”. César Andrade, professor and researcher at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon, points to the layers of sediment in various shades of brown, which can be seen on the wall of the trench located on the now dry bottom of Paul do Martinhal, next to the beach of the same name, in Sagres.

It is here that the efforts of a team of researchers are concentrated, some of them still students, from that Portuguese university, but also from the University of Poznan, in Poland. The project, called TsunaStorm, also involves the University of Coimbra and a university in Switzerland.

The work started on September 14th and will continue until the 23rd of September. Carlos Andrade reported to Sul Informaçã that “we started by prospecting some holes to identify the best places to dig the trenches, then we opened small prospecting trenches by hand.  Due to the precious help of the Municipality of Vila do Bispo, we have this machine, which makes our work much easier.” A backhoe machine, provided by the Chamber, was used to dig a twenty meter long trench.  The investigators, wearing rubber boots, carefully examined the layers of slightly different colors which can be seen on the side walls of the trench. These layers measure from one meter high to the water table in the ground. “The fact that the marsh is dry for us is very good, it makes life easier for us,” says César Andrade.

For more information:

https://www.sulinformacao.pt/2021/09/equipa-internacional-de-cientistas-procura-informacao-inedita-sobre-tsunamis-no-paul-do-martinhal/

EasyJet announces the creation of 30 new jobs in Faro with additional planes

Air carrier EasyJet announced today that it will place a new plane at the Faro base for the summer of 2022 creating around 30 direct jobs in the Algarve. In addition another four planes will be added between Malaga and Palma de Mallorca, Spain.

According to EasyJet, this investment creates around 150 direct jobs for pilots and crew under local contracts in Portugal and Spain.

“Since the beginning of the pandemic, EasyJet has continued to invest in Portugal, where it opened a new base in Faro in June 2021 and increased the global Portuguese fleet by 60%”, says the carrier.

Thus, next summer, Faro will have four planes, bringing the Portuguese fleet to 13 planes, including five at the base in Lisbon and four in Porto.

“This investment will create around 150 direct jobs in Portugal and Spain. In Portugal alone, EasyJet currently employs more than 425 people, all under local contracts and negotiated with Portuguese industrial unions”, stresses the carrier.

José Lopes, EasyJet Country Manager for Portugal says he is very pleased to be able to announce this investment in the Portuguese market. 

Portimão debates Sustainable and Healthy Mobility with experts

“Sustainable and Healthy Mobility” is the theme of the workshops that take place today and tomorrow, in the auditorium of Portimão Arena, as part of the European Mobility Week. The initiative has the presence of specialists in the subject.

The holding of these workshops, which will also be broadcast on the Facebook site of the Portimão City Council, aims to raise the discussion of principles and ideas that encourage behaviours compatible with sustainable development. The purpose is to make citizens aware of the effects that their choices will have on the environment, while providing them with opportunities to move around in a sustainable and healthy way.

Since it is important to rediscover and enhance the heritage of cities and towns by their own inhabitants, preferably in a healthier and more pleasant environment, the program will start on September 21 with the workshop “Sustainable mobility”.  This panel will deal with the role of children in the conception of the new city. Pedro Ribeiro da Silva, urban and land planner, will speak.

 

Azores Situation Report Wednesday 22nd September 2021  

From our colleague in the Azores

Covid -19 

Since the last Situation Report a week ago on the 15thSeptember of August there have been 76 new cases of Covid-19 registered and 85 recoveries.

Current situation:
Currently, there are 104 active positive cases in the archipelago, with 66 on São Miguel, seven on Pico, 16 on Terceira island, and 15 on Faial island.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, 8,895 positive cases of COVID-19 have been diagnosed in the Azores, 8,575 people have recovered from the disease, 42 died, 94 left the archipelago and 80 provided evidence of previous cure. To date, in the archipelago, 692,380 tests have been carried out for SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19 disease.

From 31st December 2020 to 20th September, 172,284 people in the Azores have been vaccinated with the first dose (72,8 per cent) and 186,398 with complete vaccination (78,8 per cent), within the Regional Vaccination Plan.

British Airways 

British Airways, from the United Kingdom, will connect London to the islands of São Miguel and Terceira, in the summer of 2022, providing more than 3,000 seats

This new operation will provide 1,800 seats for Ponta Delgada and 1,440 seats for Terceira, with a total of 3,240 available seats and a potential of 22,680 overnight stays.

The operation will start in the summer of 2022, with 10 scheduled frequencies between Heathrow airport, in London, and Ponta Delgada airport, on the island of São Miguel, on Saturdays, between July 2nd and September 3rd.

BA will use an A-320 Neo aircraft, with 180 seats and will also link Heathrow airport to Lajes airport, on Terceira Island, on Sundays, between July 10th and August 28th, with a total of eight flights.

Vaccination Centre 

The Covid-19 Vaccination Centre at Pavilhão do Mar, in Ponta Delgada, reopens tomorrow, September 21st.

The Vaccination Centre located in the Pavilhão do Mar, Portas do Mar, in Ponta Delgada was transferred to the Health Centre of Ponta Delgada because of the Azores Rally.  All citizens living in São Miguel, who are aged 12 years or over, and who have not yet been vaccinated against Covid-19, can go to the Vaccination Centre of Portas do Mar, from Monday to Friday, between 1:00 pm and 7:30 pm and on Saturdays, between 9am and 3pm, and get your vaccinations done.

On Sundays and holidays the Vaccination Centre (Ponta Delgada and Ribeira Grande) will be closed.

The Ribeira Grande Vaccination Centre is open and open from Monday to Saturday, between 1:30 pm and 3:30 pm.

This reopening maintains with the “open house” mode, which is a simple vaccination process and does not require prior appointment.