There Is A Surge In COVID-19 Cases, Peru Announces Lockdown

JAKARTA - Peruvian President Francisco Sagasti announced a total lockdown of the capital city and nine other regions in Peru, following a significant increase in COVID-19 cases that overwhelmed hospitals in the country.

The announcement, issued on Tuesday evening local time, is valid until February 14, Reuters reported. All non-essential shops were ordered to close. Office workers are also ordered to work from home.

Land and air travel between regions was also suspended. The ban on flights coming from Europe and Brazil was also extended to prevent the entry of a new, more contagious virus.

Cases of COVID-19 infection in Peru have increased rapidly, where in Tuesday's daily report, there were an additional 4,444 new cases. In total there are 1,107,239 positive cases and 40,107 deaths due to COVID-19 in Peru. The highest daily report of cases in Peru was recorded on August 22, 2020, where there were more than 9 thousand new confirmed cases.

Sagasti said the COVID-19 vaccine was a way out of the crisis and promised to be the first to receive the vaccine injection. Peru itself is known to order more than one type of vaccine.

"The first one million doses of the 38 million doses of the candidate Sinopharm vaccine will arrive in the coming days. Ready for the vaccination campaign which will start in February," he said.

Peru also has an agreement to buy 14 million doses of the vaccine developed by AstraZeneca Plc., As well as considering emergency usage requests from Gamaleya Institute and Russia's Pfizer.