Florida has reacted slowly to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. Reuters
Florida has reacted slowly to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. Reuters
Florida has reacted slowly to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. Reuters
Florida has reacted slowly to the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. Reuters

Leading US epidemiologist warns Florida could become next virus hotspot


Joyce Karam
  • English
  • Arabic

A US epidemiologist, whose institute’s research and projections are helping to steer the American government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, has warned that Florida will probably be a future hotspot for the outbreak.

Florida has more than 8,000 cases already reported and 128 deaths.

Dr Ali Mokdad, of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation  at the University of Washington, sees many reasons to be concerned about the spread of Covid-19 in the sunshine state.

"Because of its more senior population and a delayed and insufficient response, Florida is a real concern," Dr Mokdad told The National.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis waited until April to issue an order for citizens to stay home.

But that proved to be insufficient to counter the spread of the virus, Dr Mokdad said.

Florida reported its first case on March 6 but, unlike California, Washington and New York, it did not enforce a quarantine and kept its beaches open for thousands of students on spring break.

Now, the institute's model, which uses daily data for forecasts on the spread of the coronavirus in the US, projects that Florida could have as many as 6,897 Covid-19 deaths by August 4.

Dr Mokdad, also chief strategy officer for population health at the University of Washington, expects the state to peak later than mid-April, which he forecasts generally for the rest of the US.

He said more rural states such as Georgia, Alabama and Louisiana were vulnerable because of high rates of heart disease and high blood pressure, and more limited hospital capacity.

Dr Mokdad, a Lebanese-American, would not blame anyone for the spread of the pandemic in the US, but said the medical field “knew enough in December and January to be scared and to prepare”.

With more than 240,000 confirmed cases in the country, he said the peak was still expected in mid-April, and “in early June things could start getting back to normal”.

He said that by normal he meant fewer than 10 deaths a day from the virus, and a cautious, phased opening up of the country to prevent a second wave.

On the Middle East, Dr Mokdad painted a mixed picture.

“Iran is paying the price for being too relaxed early on,” he said.

Dr Mokdad said Egypt was also a cause for concern.

He said its crowded mega-cities, lack of sufficient testing and cases in other countries that were traced back to Egypt were worrying. The Egyptian government has so far reported 865 cases.

Conflict-hit countries in the region including Yemen, Iraq and Syria are also concerning, he said, because of continuing violence limiting the efforts of health organisations to fight the virus.

But he said the outlook for Gulf countries was more optimistic “because they have the means and the resources and many have invested in women’s education”.

Dr Mokdad, whose family comes from the Lebanese city of Jbeil, praised Beirut for a proactive response to the outbreak by shutting down all non-essential services, allowing testing and more recently imposing a night curfew.

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Arsenal 2 (Saka 43', Lacazette 85')

Man of the match: Shkodran Mustafi (Arsenal)

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One in nine do not have enough to eat

Created in 1961, the World Food Programme is pledged to fight hunger worldwide as well as providing emergency food assistance in a crisis.

One of the organisation’s goals is the Zero Hunger Pledge, adopted by the international community in 2015 as one of the 17 Sustainable Goals for Sustainable Development, to end world hunger by 2030.

The WFP, a branch of the United Nations, is funded by voluntary donations from governments, businesses and private donations.

Almost two thirds of its operations currently take place in conflict zones, where it is calculated that people are more than three times likely to suffer from malnutrition than in peaceful countries.

It is currently estimated that one in nine people globally do not have enough to eat.

On any one day, the WFP estimates that it has 5,000 lorries, 20 ships and 70 aircraft on the move.

Outside emergencies, the WFP provides school meals to up to 25 million children in 63 countries, while working with communities to improve nutrition. Where possible, it buys supplies from developing countries to cut down transport cost and boost local economies.

 

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Sim swap frauds are a form of identity theft.

They involve criminals conning mobile phone operators into issuing them with replacement Sim cards, often by claiming their phone has been lost or stolen 

They use the victim's personal details - obtained through criminal methods - to convince such companies of their identity.

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Notable salonnières of the Middle East through history

Al Khasan (Okaz, Saudi Arabia)

Tamadir bint Amr Al Harith, known simply as Al Khasan, was a poet from Najd famed for elegies, earning great renown for the eulogy of her brothers Mu’awiyah and Sakhr, both killed in tribal wars. Although not a salonnière, this prestigious 7th century poet fostered a culture of literary criticism and could be found standing in the souq of Okaz and reciting her poetry, publicly pronouncing her views and inviting others to join in the debate on scholarship. She later converted to Islam.

 

Maryana Marrash (Aleppo)

A poet and writer, Marrash helped revive the tradition of the salon and was an active part of the Nadha movement, or Arab Renaissance. Born to an established family in Aleppo in Ottoman Syria in 1848, Marrash was educated at missionary schools in Aleppo and Beirut at a time when many women did not receive an education. After touring Europe, she began to host salons where writers played chess and cards, competed in the art of poetry, and discussed literature and politics. An accomplished singer and canon player, music and dancing were a part of these evenings.

 

Princess Nazil Fadil (Cairo)

Princess Nazil Fadil gathered religious, literary and political elite together at her Cairo palace, although she stopped short of inviting women. The princess, a niece of Khedive Ismail, believed that Egypt’s situation could only be solved through education and she donated her own property to help fund the first modern Egyptian University in Cairo.

 

Mayy Ziyadah (Cairo)

Ziyadah was the first to entertain both men and women at her Cairo salon, founded in 1913. The writer, poet, public speaker and critic, her writing explored language, religious identity, language, nationalism and hierarchy. Born in Nazareth, Palestine, to a Lebanese father and Palestinian mother, her salon was open to different social classes and earned comparisons with souq of where Al Khansa herself once recited.

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Islamophobia definition

A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.