Germany kicks off coronavirus vaccination drive
Chancellor Angela Merkel s chief of staff Helge Braun, a trained emergency room doctor, has helped vaccinate medical staff in central Germany.
Braun tweeted that he vaccinated intensive care workers at the University Hospital in Giessen, the region he represents in parliament. He went on to tell German broadcaster n-tv that he wanted to take part in the process as a sign of appreciation but also to get a feeling myself for how the vaccination process works.
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France, President Emmanuel Macron hailed the milestone. We have a new weapon against the virus: the vaccine, he tweeted.
BioNTech-Pfizer delays COVID vaccine deliveries to 8 EU nations
The vaccine supply chain appears to have run into trouble just one day after Europe began its mass immunization program.
The COVID-19 vaccine hold-up for European nations comes a day after the bloc s mass immunization program kicked off
BioNTech-Pfizer has postponed the delivery of new batches of its coronavirus vaccine to eight European nations including Spain, the Spanish health ministry said on Monday.
The hold-up is due to a problem in the loading and shipment process at its plant in Belgium, the health ministry said in a statement, citing the Spanish branch of Pfizer.
The short passage from Britain to France across the channel is one of the most important transport corridors in Europe. On Monday, hundreds of trucks backed up for miles, prompting concern that food and other time-sensitive cargo might end up rotting on the roadside. British supermarket chain Sainsbury s warned: “If nothing changes, we will start to see gaps over the coming days on lettuce, some salad leaves, cauliflowers, broccoli and citrus fruit – all of which are imported from the continent at this time of year.”
LYNDA HALLINAN/Stuff
Sainsbury s has warned shoppers their may be a shortfall of lettuce, cauliflowers, broccoli and citrus fruit for Christmas.
UK Virus Mutation Prompts Panic Shopping , #lettuce Trends On Twitter UK Virus Mutation Prompts Panic Shopping , #lettuce Trends On Twitter Scientists are advising the British government estimated that the new variant was 50% more transmissible.
In Britain panicked shoppers tried to stock up on supplies for Christmas and beyond. (File)
London:
The British government scrambled Monday to dampen the impact of travel entry bans from more than 40 countries prompted by fear of a new coronavirus mutation believed to have originated in England.
Health officials said they do not believe the mutation is more deadly or vaccine resistant, but evidence that it spreads much more easily has alarmed governments in Europe and around the world.