Hospitals across the U.S. continue to suffering a critical shortage of staff as the Delta variant hits states hard. Floods of unvaccinated patients continue to arrive at emergency departments requiring urgent treatment, with Texas setting up specialist units in parking lots to stem the flow.
Florida, Arkansas, Louisiana and Oregon currently all have more people hospitalized with COVID-19 than at any other point in the pandemic. Reports suggest some patients are waiting inside ambulances for up to an hour before hospitals can admit them.
Elsewhere, New Zealand is bracing impact as the government warns of a strict lockdown if the Delta variant is detected. The country, alongside its neighbor Australia, continues with its zero-COVID ambitions but is expecting to be hit by the more infectious strains such as Delta and Lambda through imports and travel.
Follow Newsweek’s liveblog for all the latest.
Moderna delays vaccine orders to South Korea
Many South Koreans will have to wait an extra two weeks to get their second COVID vaccine as Moderna delays shipments to the country.
It is the latest development in a serious of supply issues that has hampered the country’s vaccine rollout in the midst of a second wave of the virus.
Indonesian ‘Delta’ robot gets to work helping self-isolating COVID
A robot made of recycled pots and pans by villagers and scientists in Indonesia has spent the first day helping out people with COVID isolating indoors.
The Delta machine delivers meals and medication to their homes, removing any risk of infection for family members, friends and health professionals. It also helpfully sprays the streets with a disinfectant spray as it moves around, as well as providing entertainment for the kids – and adults – in Surabaya city.
It has been put together out of old kitchen utensils, a quadbike and – yes – an ancient TV monitor.
Juni Kriswanto/Getty Images
Florida braces for two emergencies – COVID and Tropical Storm Fred
Officials feared Storm Fred could become much faster and more dangerous as it hurtles towards the U.S. – and it has done exactly that. The tropical storm developed just south of Puerto Rico late Tuesday night and now it aims toward a Florida that’s dealing with a record COVID outbreak.
As of early this morning, winds have reached up to 40mph, but if they were to reach around 74mph and the water remains warm, it could develop into a deadly hurricane.
Meanwhile, health officials are rapidly trying to distribute an emergency order of ventilators brought in from other states.
READ MORE: Tropical Storm Fred Develops, Barrels Toward Florida as COVID Surges
Good morning and welcome to Newsweek’s liveblog
Today we continue our coverage of COVID at home and abroad as hospitals in the U.S. fight the Delta variant and others countries brace for impact.
Follow Newsweek’s liveblog throughout Wednesday for all the latest.
