âThe mood is extremely grim,â says Dr Fyezah Jehan, a doctor in Karachi. âI think we are very scared of an India-like situation. Weâre hoping that some magic happens, and this [current] lockdown can prevent a new onslaught of cases.â
A lorry is loaded with oxygen cylinders to supply private hospitals in Karachi, Pakistan. Photograph: Fareed Khan/AP
âRapidly rising need for oxygen puts pressure on the health system, which it canât meet, and we see patient deaths,â said Greenslade. âAnd that will keep happening week after week, month after month, if the vaccine rollout is slow, because at this point, in many of these countries, itâs only increases in vaccine coverage that will bend the curve on transmission.â
After India: The countries on the brink of another Covid oxygen crisis mg.co.za - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from mg.co.za Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Richard Pérez-Peña, The New York Times
Published: 09 May 2021 12:09 PM BdST
Updated: 09 May 2021 12:09 PM BdST An employee refills oxygen tanks as a free service provided by the government in Iztapalapa, Mexico City, on Feb. 4, 2021. In the last two months, the unmet, global need for medical oxygen has more than tripled. The New York Times
The latest horror of the pandemic is that large numbers of people around the world are dying for lack of access to medical oxygen, especially in India. Each day, tens of thousands of people are admitted to hospitals with COVID-19, driving the demand for the oxygen far beyond the supply.
The latest horror of the pandemic is that large numbers of people around the world are dying for lack of access to medical oxygen, especially in India. Each day, tens of thousands of people are admitted to hospitals with Covid-19, driving the demand for the oxygen far beyond the supply.
Oxygen makes up 21 percent of the atmosphere. A handful of companies capture and purify it in bulk, but they sell most of it to industry. Many poorer parts of the world lack the infrastructure needed to deliver or make use of the medical grade supplies those companies sell, which are designed to be delivered via pipes to hospital rooms.