The threat for Europe posed by the coronavirus “remains present,” the World Health Organization said Thursday, despite a recent decline in new cases, hospitalizations and deaths in the region.
“It is 462 days since the first Covid-19 cases were reported. Based on numbers of confirmed cases, 5.5% of the entire European population have now had Covid-19, while 7% have completed a full vaccination series,” WHO’s regional director for Europe, Dr. Hans Kluge, said in a press conference on Thursday.
“But even as new cases, hospitalizations and deaths decline, the threat remains present,” Kluge warned.
The virus still carries the potential to inflict devastating effects, he added, noting that close to half of all reported infections in Europe since the pandemic began have actually come during the first four months of this year.
Signaling some hope for the region, however, he added that “for the first time in two months, new cases fell significantly last week. Yet, infection rates across the region remain extremely high.”
The comments come amid a mixed picture of recovery across the globe. While India is struggling with a devastating surge in cases and lack of medical supplies, other parts of the world are starting to reopen their economies.
In Europe, the U.K. is steadily lifting its lockdown and its vaccination rollout continues at pace. To date, almost 34 million adults in the country have received a first dose of a coronavirus vaccine, and over 13 million people have had two doses, government data shows.
