The new lockdown will mainly affect people who are not vaccinated.
Kyiv is in the red zone from today, which means that several restrictions are introduced. However, it will mainly affect the unvaccinated people. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that cinemas, theaters, shopping malls, fitness centers, and cultural institutions would be forced to close unless all their staff and guests were vaccinated. Guest will, therefore, be required to show proof of vaccination, and international certificates are accepted.
People will also only be allowed to take public transport if they are vaccinated or have a new PCR test, but it is unclear to what extent these rules will be enforced. Minors are also only allowed to visit shoppings malls if they are accompanied by an adult who is fully vaccinated or has a negative PCR test.
Also, schools will go back to remote learning, but the Kyiv kindergartens will stay open if all staff is vaccinated. It is the latest step to stop the spread of the virus.
The situation is getting worse
Fifteen regions of Ukraine are already in the red zone and are facing the strictest restrictions. Ukraine colors regions into green, yellow, orange, or red colors, depending on the number of Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations.
More and more areas are entering the red zone after Covid-cases in Ukraine have exploded over recent weeks, and more and more people have required hospitalization. Yesterday, Ukraine recorded 17,430 new cases and 336 deaths, according to Kyiv Post. More than 72,000 people have died from Covid-19 in Ukraine so far.
Kyiv recorded 1,451 new cases yesterday and 39 deaths. The city administration added that more and more are hospitalized, and oxygen is limited.
“About 84% of people who are hospitalized need oxygen support. Over 66% of oxygen beds are full for the third day in a row,” said Kyiv mayor Klitschko recently.
It is serious
Only about 18 percent of Ukrainians are fully vaccinated, and it is one of the lowest vaccination rates in Europe. Many Ukrainians are skeptical of vaccines and are refusing to get vaccinated. However, in recent days, due to the introduction of red zones around the country, more and more people are now vaccinating.
The government also requires that teachers and other government employees be fully vaccinated from Nov. 7. If not, they will be suspended without pay. Furthermore, everyone traveling on a train between regions will also require vaccination.
Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, Oleksiy Danilov, warned that if people aren’t soon vaccinated, thousands more will die.
“Unfortunately, given what we have, we may see a thousand daily deaths from COVID-19 in early November,” Danilov said, according to Ukrinform, and added that the daily number of new cases is projected to be more than 50,000 soon.
