LONDON—British police said Tuesday they would conduct an investigation into parties that took place in Downing Street during lockdowns, raising pressure on Prime Minister Boris Johnson, whose popularity has fallen sharply in the wake of the revelations and who faces calls to resign from within his own political party.
Mr. Johnson said he attended an event billed as a “bring your own booze” party at the garden at Downing Street, which houses the prime minister’s official residence and offices, in May 2020, when lockdown rules said that Britons could only meet one person outdoors. The prime minister has apologized and said he thought it was a work event.
As the U.S. continues to warn that the threat of a Russian attack on Ukraine remains “imminent,” there is one dissenting voice that has grown stronger — Ukraine’s.
From President Volodymyr Zelenskyy down, the Ukrainian government has tried to urge calm, with senior officials making clear in recent days they don’t see the risks now as any more heightened than over the last eight years of Russian-stoked conflict in eastern Ukraine.
Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Hanna Malyar, for example, said the number of Russian troops massed on Ukraine’s borders “are not enough for a full-scale invasion.” Instead, Russian leader Vladimir Putin is using the troop build-up “primarily to politically blackmail the West and pressure Ukraine,” she wrote in a Facebook post.
“Russia’s tactical goal is provoke integral divisions in our society, sow fear and panic, to destabilize the internal situation,” she added.
Ukrainian concern that fear and panic could spread, sending Ukraine’s economy spiraling or creating political turmoil, has started to create divisions between the U.S. and Ukraine — despite efforts on both sides to make clear they stand united against any Russian aggression.
“All is under control. There are no reasons to panic,” Zelenskyy said in a televised address to his country Monday night — but the speech spent more time on COVID-19 than Russia.
Some of the steps the U.S. has taken in recent days, some in Kyiv fear, are playing into Moscow’s playbook — stoking fear and panic.
That includes the State Department’s decision to draw down the U.S. embassy, ordering diplomats’ families to evacuate and authorizing non-emergency staff to depart if they choose.
State Department spokesperson Ned Price called it a “prudent precaution,” but his Ukrainian counterpart, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Oleg Nikolenko criticized it as “a premature one and an instance of excessive caution.”
“The Russian Federation is currently taking active efforts to destabilize the situation in Ukraine. A large amount of misinformation, manipulation, and fakes are spreading in Ukrainian and international media in order to cause panic among Ukrainians and foreigners, intimidate business, and undermine the economic and financial stability of our state. In this situation, it is important to soberly assess the risks and stay calm,” Nikolenko added.
Just four countries have followed the U.S., to varying degrees — the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and Germany.
“We cannot allow ourselves for that to happen – that our economy falls. If people cross into a state of panic, that is a dangerous situation for our country, and it will be far easier to then manipulate us, and that is Russia’s goal,” warned Aleksey Danilov, a top Ukrainian national security official.
Some economic damage is already apparent. Yields on Ukrainian sovereign Eurobonds in U.S. dollars suddenly shot up to 11-14% on Jan. 14 and have risen even higher since — losing Ukraine access to the international financial market, according to Anders Åslund, a senior fellow at the Stockholm Free World Forum.
“Ukraine’s emerging economic problems are entirely due to the shadow cast by the threat of a dramatic escalation in Russian military aggression,” Åslund wrote for the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based think tank.
The White House and State Department defended the administration’s decisions and rhetoric, denying that drawing down the embassy, putting 8,500 U.S. troops on alert, and warning of an “imminent” threat have escalated the situation.
“I will let others assess, but there are 100,000 troops — Russian troops — on the border of Ukraine and no clarity that the leader of Russia doesn’t intend to invade. That sounds pretty dangerous to me,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday.
But 100,000 is not enough for an invasion, according to Malyar and the top commander for Ukraine’s forces on the frontlines. Lt. Gen. Oleksander Pavlyuk told ABC News last week that Ukraine had assessed Russian had 127,000 troops in total, although the U.S. still says approximately 100,000. Either way, Ukraine’s own army is approximately 200,000 strong now, and many more Russian troops would be needed to invade a country the size of Texas.
The number of Russian troops is also “not increasing in the way that today many are representing,” Danilov, who serves as secretary of Ukraine’s national security council, told the BBC in an interview Tuesday. “Is it unpleasant for us? Yes, but for us, it’s not news. If for someone in the West that has become news, well, I’m sorry.”
Still, Psaki denied there was daylight between Washington and Kyiv, adding, “We are in constant contact with Ukrainians to reiterate our support, to convey updates on shipments of supplies, military equipment — something that’s been happening over the last several days.”
Nikolenko too highlighted that military cooperation, praising “its proactive diplomatic position and for strengthening Ukraine’s defense capabilities, including the provision of weapons and equipment.”
Asked about the differences, the top U.S. diplomat in Ukraine Kristina Kvien denied there were any. In an exclusive interview Tuesday, she told ABC News, “President Zelenskyy is taking the threat very seriously, and he is being careful to make preparations as needed.”
The Ukrainian people have “been living with Russian threats for a long time, so I would say that they are just a bit more ‘sang-froid’ as they say in French. But that doesn’t mean that they don’t take them seriously,” added Kvien, the embassy’s chargé d’affaires.
In Kyiv, there is calm, if at least more talk now about the threat of a Russian attack — whether across the border, in cyber space, or through continued efforts to destabilize Ukraine’s government and economy.
“This looks and feels different … It certainly has people a lot more alert, especially if you watch the news all the time,” said Reno Domenico, an American businessman who has lived in Ukraine for 15 years. But he said the cafes remain full, and people are out shopping because, “People don’t panic, and panic is a bad thing. You make bad decisions when you panic.”
After the U.S. Embassy urged Americans to consider departing immediately, Domenico said more people started talking about the possibility. While everyone should have a plan, he added, his is to stay put for now.
ABC News’s Patrick Reevell contributed to this report from Kyiv, Ukraine, and Desiree Adib from New York.
WASHINGTON, Jan 25 (Reuters) – The United States is in talks with major energy-producing countries and companies around the world over a potential diversion of supplies to Europe if Russia invades Ukraine, senior Biden administration officials said on Tuesday.
Speaking to reporters on a call, the officials did not name the specific countries or companies they were in talks with to ensure an uninterrupted energy flow into Europe for the remainder of the winter, but said they included a broad range of suppliers, including sellers of liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Reuters reported earlier this month that State Department officials were discussing contingency plans with energy companies to ensure stable supplies to Europe if conflict between Russia and Ukraine disrupted Russian supplies.
“We’ve been working to identify additional volumes of non- Russian natural gas from various areas of the world; from North Africa and the Middle East to Asia and the United States,” a senior administration official said on condition of anonymity.
“Correspondingly, we’re … in discussions with major natural gas producers around the globe to understand their capacity and willingness to temporarily surge natural gas output and to allocate these volumes to European buyers,” the official said.
The White House’s plan is complicated by the fact that the world’s LNG producers are already churning out as much as they possibly can. Reuters reported that the companies contacted told the U.S. government officials that global gas supplies are tight and that there is little available to substitute large volumes from Russia. read more
Russia has massed an estimated 100,000 troops within reach of Ukraine’s border, surrounding it from the north, east and south, raising alarm in the West that Moscow is preparing for a new military assault after its invasion of Crimea in 2014.
The Russian government denies that it plans an invasion and Moscow has cited the Western response as evidence that Russia is the target, not the instigator, of aggression.
ENERGY CRISIS
The European Union depends on Russia for around a third of its gas supplies. Any interruptions to Russia’s gas supply to Europe would exacerbate an existing energy crisis caused by a shortage.
Record power prices have driven up consumer energy bills as well as business costs and sparked protests in some countries.
Russia normally supplies 40 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas per year to Europe through Ukraine, the senior administration official said, adding that it has already cut those supplies through this route by half.
“To ensure Europe is able to make it through the winter and spring, we expect to be prepared to ensure alternative supplies covering a significant majority of the potential shortfall,” the official said.
The key to ensuring supplies was also about identifying the locations where the shortfall would be, the official said. “The story of Europe is making sure that you have the access to the right locations in Europe that would be most affected by Russian cut-off of supplies and where storage is lower than other places in Europe.”
The U.S. Coast Guard said it was searching for 39 people after the boat that was carrying them from the Bahamas capsized off the Atlantic coast of Florida on Saturday night.
Rescuers learned of the accident on Tuesday morning, when a boater, who was described as a “good Samaritan,” found a man clinging to the capsized vessel, the Coast Guard said.
The man said he had been hanging on to the boat since Saturday night, when it left Bimini, the Bahamas, and began heading north before running into severe weather.
The boat capsized about 45 miles east of the Fort Pierce Inlet, the Coast Guard said. It was not immediately clear on Tuesday what type of boat it was. No one aboard was wearing a life jacket, the Coast Guard said.
“I welcome the Met’s decision to conduct its own investigation because I believe this will help to give the public the clarity it needs and help to draw a line under matters,” Mr. Johnson said in Parliament on Tuesday.
His official spokesman said the prime minister did not believe he had broken the law. No mention of the police investigation was made during a cabinet meeting on Tuesday morning, although Mr. Johnson was informed about it before the meeting.
While the latest development could give Mr. Johnson space to breathe as the police investigation unfolds, it banishes any hope that Ms. Gray’s investigations would clear Downing Street of misbehavior and allow it to quickly move beyond the scandal.
It raises the prospect that Ms. Gray has uncovered information not in the public domain, and the possible delay caused by the police investigation means that more leaks could emerge to keep the issue at the top of the news agenda.
Were Mr. Johnson to be questioned himself by the police, it would not be the first time for a prime minister in recent decades. In 2006 and 2007, toward the end of his tenure as prime minister, Tony Blair was questioned twice by the police over allegations that honors had been given to business leaders in exchange for donations.
Jonathan Powell, who served as chief of staff to Mr. Blair, said that investigation was an extreme distraction for the prime minister and his government, even though prosecutors ultimately decided not to bring charges against anyone.
Similarly, the crisis over parties in Downing Street, which has dominated the news for nearly two months, now looks likely to paralyze the government and continue dragging down the Conservative Party in the polls for a while longer.
The local office of the National Weather Service is taking a potential weekend storm seriously enough to post a special message about it at the top of its forecasting page for Providence.
“There is the potential for a coastal storm to bring heavy snowfall and high winds to portions of the area late Friday night into Saturday night,” the Weather Service says in its Hazardous Weather Outlook. “Uncertainties remain with the track and intensity of the coastal storm and its resulting potential impacts.”
Nevertheless, several computer models show the storm riding just off the coast and dropping “a swath of 8 to 12 inches of snow somewhere in southern New England,” the Weather Service says in its forecast discussion.
The storm would also deliver strong winds and could cause coastal flooding because of astronomically high tides, according to the Weather Service.
The storm was off Alaska Monday, and forecasters expect it to move across the country, dipping south with the jet stream, pick up energy off the Carolina coast and move north.
AccuWeather says, “There is every indication that a storm will develop and strengthen off the southern Atlantic coast late this week. The storm could intensify enough from Friday to Saturday to be classified as a bomb cyclone as it moves northward toward New England.”
“A bomb cyclone, or bombogenesis, occurs when the central pressure of a storm crashes by 0.71 of an inch (24 millibars) or greater within 24 hours. When the pressure plummets, winds rush in toward the center of the storm at a faster pace,” AccuWeather says. “The winds can carry a great deal of moisture with them and unleash that in the form of copious amounts of precipitation. If the air is cold enough, heavy snow and blizzard conditions can unfold.”
AccuWeather says, “At least part of New England is likely to have a major snowfall by way of a powerful nor’easter, but AccuWeather forecasters are still closely monitoring the storm’s potential path and how close it will hug the coast.”
WASHINGTON, Jan 24 (Reuters) – (Note: This story contains language in paragraph 3 that may offend some readers)
U.S. President Joe Biden was caught on a hot mic cursing a Fox News reporter at a White House event on Monday after the journalist shouted a question about the impact of rising inflation on this year’s congressional elections.
As journalists were ushered out of a meeting of Biden’s Competition Council, Peter Doocy, a White House correspondent with whom Biden regularly spars, asked if it was OK to ask about inflation and if it was a political liability.
“That’s a great asset, more inflation,” Biden responded sarcastically over a din of reporters shouting questions, apparently not realizing his microphone was still on. “What a stupid son of a bitch,” he added.
U.S. consumer prices increased solidly in December, culminating in the largest annual rise in inflation in nearly four decades.
U.S. President Joe Biden responds to questions from reporters as he meets with his Competition Council in the East Room of the White House in Washington, U.S. January 24, 2022. REUTERS/Leah Millis
Within about an hour of the exchange, Biden called Doocy’s cell phone and said “it’s nothing personal, pal,” Doocy later told Fox News host Sean Hannity.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment while Fox News pointed Reuters to a transcript of an interview with Doocy about the exchange on Monday evening.
Biden took office a year ago pledging to take a hard line on any disrespect among members of his administration.
“If you’re ever working with me and I hear you treat another colleague with disrespect, talk down to someone, I promise you I will fire you on the spot … no ifs, ands or buts,” Biden told political appointees during a virtual swearing-in ceremony. “Everybody is entitled to be treated with decency and dignity,” he said at the time.
Biden’s predecessor, Republican Donald Trump, famously attacked reporters at rallies and news conferences, to the delight of many of his supporters.
Doocy, who has long covered Biden, regularly gets called on by the president at events, often asking skeptical and critical questions. Conservative-leaning Fox News has been critical of Biden’s presidency and Democrats.
“Well, guys, this weekend was the divisional round of the N.F.L. playoffs, and after all four games were decided on the final play, people are calling it the greatest playoff weekend of all time. Well, everyone from Buffalo, Green Bay, Tennessee, and Tampa are like not, ‘Eh, not so much.’” — JIMMY FALLON
“That’s right, Tom Brady and the defending champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers were knocked out of the playoffs. Brady is really not used to losing — he normally commutes home via parade.” — JIMMY FALLON
“Yeah, it was a weekend of upsets on Saturday, Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers hosted the San Francisco 49ers and lost in Green Bay. In other words, Aaron Rodgers failed his at-home test.” — JIMMY FALLON
“It was crazy to see Tom Brady — it was like the Coyote finally caught the Road Runner and ate him right there on TV.” — JIMMY KIMMEL
“Aaron Rogers, you may recall, was caught in a series of lies about his vaccination status earlier in the season. Before the game, he lashed out at President Biden, said we have a fake White House, a bunch of other stuff befitting a man who has been hit in the head a lot of times.”— JIMMY KIMMEL
“Also great to hear someone say ‘He caught it,’ and it’s not about Omicron.” — TREVOR NOAH
MOSCOW, Jan 25 (Reuters) – Russia said on Tuesday it was watching with great concern after the United States put 8,500 troops on alert to be ready to deploy to Europe in case of an escalation in the Ukraine crisis.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused Washington of fuelling tensions over Ukraine – repeating Moscow’s line that the crisis is being driven by U.S. and NATO actions rather than by its own build-up of tens of thousands of troops near the Ukrainian border.
Western states accuse Russia of planning a new attack on Ukraine, which it invaded in 2014. Moscow denies any such plan but says it could take unspecified military action unless demands are met, including a NATO promise never to admit Kyiv.
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A service member of the Ukrainian armed forces walks at combat positions near the line of separation from Russian-backed rebels near Horlivka in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, January 22, 2022. Picture taken January 22, 2022. Picture taken REUTERS/Anna Kudriavtseva
NATO said on Monday it was putting forces on standby and reinforcing eastern Europe with more ships and fighter jets. Russia denounced the moves as Western “hysteria”. read more
Peskov said President Vladimir Putin would talk this week to his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, who is also planning to speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
Russia is awaiting a written U.S. response this week to its list of security demands it has presented, some of which Washington has dismissed as non-starters.
Peskov said the U.S. troop alert did not affect negotiations because the current phase of talks had been completed.
Both tests measure skills in math, reading and writing through multiple-choice questions. Some nuanced differences: The ACT, unlike the SAT, has a science section. The SAT, unlike the ACT, includes some math questions that require students to produce a response without the prompt of multiple choices. As of now, the tests are roughly the same length — about three hours, not counting breaks. The SAT, launched in 1926, is the older of the two.
Missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have left Ukraine temporarily, according to a church spokesman, as the international political community remains at an impasse over Ukraine’s future.
“The decision is made out of an abundance of caution, as some government embassies in Ukraine are preparing to move certain personnel and their family members,” Sam Penrod said.
Nations, companies and other organizations are watching closely as Russia has massed an estimated 100,000 troops near Ukraine’s border during debate over whether Ukraine might join NATO and other issues. U.S. President Joe Biden has directed the Pentagon to put about 8,500 U.S.-based troops on heightened alert for potential deployment to Europe to reassure allies amid rising fears of a possible Russian military move on Ukraine, reported The Associated Press.
The church reassigned full-time missionaries in the Ukraine Dnipro and Ukraine Kyiv/Moldova missions to missions in other countries. Some were moved to Germany, the Deseret News has learned.
“Many of these missionaries are being reassigned to missions in Europe,” Penrod said, “and a few missionaries who are approaching their planned release date will complete their missionary service and return home. Missionaries who have recently been called to Ukraine will receive a temporary assignment elsewhere. Some missionaries will serve in Moldova, which is away from any potential conflict areas.
“We pray for a peaceful resolution to the tensions in Ukraine and look forward to when the missionaries may return.”
The church occasionally removes missionaries or entire missions due to war, civil unrest, pandemic or other security or health reasons.
The Daily is made by Lisa Tobin, Rachel Quester, Lynsea Garrison, Clare Toeniskoetter, Paige Cowett, Michael Simon Johnson, Brad Fisher, Larissa Anderson, Chris Wood, Jessica Cheung, Stella Tan, Alexandra Leigh Young, Lisa Chow, Eric Krupke, Marc Georges, Luke Vander Ploeg, M.J. Davis Lin, Austin Mitchell, Dan Powell, Dave Shaw, Sydney Harper, Daniel Guillemette, Robert Jimison, Mike Benoist, Liz O. Baylen, Asthaa Chaturvedi, Kaitlin Roberts, Rachelle Bonja, Diana Nguyen, Marion Lozano, Corey Schreppel, Anita Badejo, Rob Szypko, Elisheba Ittoop, Chelsea Daniel, Mooj Zadie, Patricia Willens and Rowan Niemisto.
Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Sam Dolnick, Paula Szuchman, Cliff Levy, Lauren Jackson, Julia Simon, Mahima Chablani, Sofia Milan, Desiree Ibekwe, Erica Futterman, Wendy Dorr, Elizabeth Davis-Moorer, Jeffrey Miranda, Renan Borelli and Maddy Masiello.
Fox News White House correspondent reacts to the president’s hot mic moment ‘Hannity.’
Fox News Peter Doocy revealed that President Biden called his cellphone following a hostile exchange the two of them had at the White House earlier in the day.
During an event on Monday evening, Doocy attempted to ask Biden a question about inflation, to which the president responded by calling him a “stupid son of a b—-.”
Appearing on “Hannity,” Doocy said the president reached out to him “within about an hour of that exchange.”
“He said ‘It’s nothing personal, pal,'” Doocy said. “And we went back and forth, and we were talking about just kind of moving forward, and I made sure to tell him that I’m always gonna try to ask something different than what everybody else is asking. And he said, ‘You got to.’ And that’s a quote from the president, so I’ll keep doing it.”
When Fox News’ Sean Hannity asked if Biden apologized, Doocy responded, “He cleared the air and I appreciate it.”
“We had a nice call,” Doocy said.
“That’s not an answer,” Hannity chuckled. “That doesn’t sound like an apology.”
“He said ‘It’s nothing personal, pal.’ And I told him that I appreciate him reaching out,” Doocy replied, adding, “Hey Sean, the world is on the brink of, like, World War III right now with all of this stuff going on. I appreciate that the president took a couple of minutes out this evening while he was still at this desk to give me a call and clear the air.”
“I don’t need anybody to apologize to me. He can call me whatever he wants as long as it gets him talking!” Doocy added. “I think that’s enough. That’s enough. So we can move on. We can now move forward. There will be years- three to seven years of opportunities to ask him about different stuff.”
Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy.
Biden met with the Competition Council and members of his cabinet Monday to discuss ways to lower prices for American families.
Following his prepared remarks, near the eight-minute mark of the live stream, members of the press began shouting questions, hoping for the president to take a few before they were shown the door by White House staff.
Biden knocked the first reporter, who asked about the administration’s call with European leaders as tensions between Russia and Ukraine rise.
“The only reason I don’t like doing is this because you never report on why it’s called a meeting because you never report on why I’ve called a meeting, and this is important” Biden said. “I had a very, very, very good meeting, totally unanimity with all the European leaders will talk about it later. Thank you.”
“Will you take questions on inflation then?” Doocy then asked. “Do you think inflation will be a political liability ahead of the midterms?”
As Doocy and the other reporters were being shooed away, Biden took a swipe at the Fox News correspondent.
“That’s a great asset, more inflation. What a stupid son of a b—-,” Biden said to his cabinet.
Last week, Biden similarly lashed out at Fox News White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich for attempting to press him following his controversial remarks at his press conference about the escalating Russia-Ukraine conflict.
“Why are you waiting on Putin to make the first move, sir?” Heinrich asked.
Biden chuckled, softly replying, “What a stupid question.”
The White House later walked back Biden’s comment.
WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 24: U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during a meeting with the White House Competition Council in the East Room of the White House January 24, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Early in his administration, Biden warned his staff to show colleagues and members of the press with respect.
“I’m not joking when I say this: If you’re ever working with me and I hear you treat another colleague with disrespect or talk down to someone, I promise you, I will fire you on the spot — on the spot. No ifs ands or buts,” Biden said. “Everybody is entitled to be treated with decency and dignity.”
In Belarus, which borders Ukraine, a group of hackers calling themselves “Cyber Partisans” said Monday they had hacked the railway network of the Kremlin-aligned state to “disrupt” the movement of Russian troops. The group, announcing its cyber intrusion in posts on Twitter and Telegram, said it had encrypted the railroad’s “servers, databases and workstations to disrupt its operations” because the network facilitates the passage of “occupying troops.”
Mr. Silver is survived by his wife, Rosa, and four children, Edward, Esther, Janine and Michelle.
His rise to speaker came via tragedy in 1994, when then-Speaker Saul Weprin died from complications of a stroke. Mr. Silver had been serving as interim speaker, ascending to the job with the support of other New York City Democrats, who wield profound power in the Assembly.
Making deals with the State Senate, then ruled by Republicans, required a deft negotiator, according to Joseph R. Lentol, a former Democratic Party assemblyman from Brooklyn. He said Mr. Silver played a key role in securing state money in the early 1990s to fund the hiring of police officers in the city, clean up Times Square and help spark “the renaissance of New York City.”
“He was able to work things out and make compromises with a Republican Senate and very often a Republican governor,” Mr. Lentol said, noting that Mr. Silver had served for 12 years under Gov. George E. Pataki, a three-term Republican.
In 2000, Mr. Silver faced a revolt on the Assembly floor from a faction of Democrats, many of them from upstate, who were dissatisfied with his leadership. The attemptat a coup failed, but it wounded Mr. Silver politically and made public a remarkable intraparty power struggle that would have typically played out behind closed doors in the Capitol.
Deaths from COVID-19 in Los Angeles County have soared over the last week, with officials saying most of the recent fatalities appear to be from the Omicron variant.
The spread of the latest coronavirus variant has moved with unprecedented speed since December, although officials have said people who get infected with Omicron generally get less severe symptoms than with the earlier Delta variant. Even so, officials say it is fatal for some.
Of 102 deaths reported Thursday — the highest single-day tally since March 10 — 90% involved people who became ill with COVID-19 after Christmas, and 80% were among those who fell ill after New Year’s Day, indicating a high likelihood of Omicron infection, Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said.
It appears that people who are dying from the Omicron variant are deteriorating much more quickly than those infected by earlier variants, Ferrer told reporters.
“It means that for the people who are, in fact, ending up passing away from COVID, if they were infected with Omicron, it looks like they get hit pretty hard earlier on,” Ferrer said.
During the summer Delta wave, COVID-19 patients were diagnosed with a coronavirus infection or started having symptoms four to five weeks before their deaths. But among fatalities reported late last week, many had an initial onset of symptoms or first diagnosis three weeks or earlier before their deaths.
“That’s a relatively short period of time between the time somebody gets infected, gets their symptoms and then passes away,” Ferrer said.
Over the seven-day period that ended Sunday, L.A. County is averaging 61 COVID-19 deaths a day, according to a Times analysis of state data released Monday. That surpasses the spring 2020 surge at the start of the pandemic, which maxed out at 50 deaths a day; the first summer surge, at 49 deaths a day; and last summer’s Delta surge, which topped out at 35.
But last winter’s surge was significantly worse: About 240 deaths a day were reported in L.A. County.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said he believes “we’re in a better place” compared with last winter, given the overall lesser severity of Omicron, even though it is more widespread.
But the rising death toll can’t be ignored or dismissed, officials say.
“We’re still walking through … the shadow of the valley of death right now when we see 100-plus people in my city, my county, die in a single day like we did last week,” Garcetti said. “And somehow that’s become normalized, or we don’t think about it as hard as we used to. I do. I still think about it. I pray on it each night. I pray on it in the morning when I wake up.”
There also are growing signs that new Omicron cases have peaked in California. But officials expect hospitals to be challenged for days and weeks to come and deaths from the winter surge to continue.
“The fact that Omicron is so infectious has created a bigger problem” than other characteristics of the variant itself, said Dr. Armand Dorian, chief executive of USC Verdugo Hills Hospital in Glendale.
“The virus itself is not as lethal as Delta. Not as many people who get it will be critically ill or go into the ICU. But more people are getting infected — I mean tremendously more people,” Dorian said.
That means that even if a smaller percentage of people who are infected end up with dire illness, the huge numbers of cases have resulted in high numbers of deaths.
The rampant infectiousness of the Omicron variant has also pulled away more healthcare workers who get sick, creating staffing woes for hospitals and other health facilities.
“How do we discharge you to a nursing home or a skilled nursing facility? Because their staff is short. It’s a chain. It’s one big loop. And if one of the links is broken, everything backs up,” Dorian said.
Dorian said that a few weeks ago, roughly 10% of staff at USC Verdugo Hills were out. As workers have recovered, that number has fallen to around 3%, he said.
The crunch has been felt especially hard in emergency departments: During earlier surges, “people really didn’t utilize the ER unless they were really sick” and people with illnesses besides COVID weren’t coming in either, Dorian said. “Now they are.”
More than a third of patients in the Glendale hospital are positive for the coronavirus, although some are “incidental” patients who came to the hospital for something different and were tested and found to have the virus when they arrived, Dorian said.
He estimated that 70% of their coronavirus-positive patients “are here because of COVID — and for everybody who has COVID, it is a complicating factor.”
There are some estimates that 80% to 90% of Omicron infections result in no symptoms, but the unprecedented wave of cases linked to the new variant could still result in record hospital admissions in some countries, Dr. Christopher Murray, the director of the University of Washington’s Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation, said in a commentary for the journal The Lancet.
That’s already the case nationwide. Across the country, the U.S. in recent days tallied about 145,000 coronavirus-positive people in hospitals. That’s more than the previous pandemic high of 124,000 recorded last winter.
Across the U.S., average daily COVID-19 deaths this winter have exceeded that of the summer Delta wave. The nation was averaging nearly 2,000 deaths a day in recent days, exceeding the summer high of about 1,900 daily deaths. The latest figure is still lower than the record 3,400 deaths a day last winter.
“As cases and hospitalizations remain high, of most concern is the increase in deaths,” the L.A. County Department of Public Health said in a statement. Unvaccinated people in L.A. County were 23 times more likely to die from COVID-19 compared with those who are fully vaccinated, recent data show.
“Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have recognized that while many experience mild illness from COVID, there are others that will not do well if they become infected,” Ferrer said in a statement Friday.
The number of coronavirus-positive patients in L.A. County’s intensive care units continues to rise. As of Sunday, there were 794 coronavirus-positive ICU patients in L.A. County, up 28% from the previous week. The latest figure is the highest number in nearly a year, but still less than half the record high of 1,731 on Jan. 8, 2021.
Health officials say the rising numbers among children are the result of the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, which is much more easily transmitted than earlier strains of the coronavirus.
The number of coronavirus-positive hospitalized patients has started to stabilize. Over the last week, L.A. County reported between 4,500 and 4,800 patients, figures that stopped significantly climbing late last week.
And new daily coronavirus cases appear to be declining. By Sunday, L.A. County was averaging about 31,000 cases a day over the past week, according to state data released Monday; more than a week ago, it was averaging 40,000 to 44,000 cases a day, a record high.
Still, case rates are not dropping evenly. Wastewater analysis indicates that while downtown and Westside areas show slightly lower levels of the coronavirus, viral levels in the eastern and southern parts of the county are still high, Ferrer said.
The wastewater data correlate with areas now reporting the highest rates of coronavirus cases, including in South L.A., southeast L.A. County, East L.A., the northeastern San Fernando Valley and parts of the San Gabriel Valley. That’s a shift from December, when the county’s highest case rates were in wealthier communities along the Malibu coast, the Westside, the southern San Fernando Valley and the Hollywood Hills communities.
Officials say the Omicron variant has flooded the emergency room at Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Hospital, ground zero for hospitals besieged by a winter surge, with people who are not as sick.
At that time, “those most likely to become infected often were travelers, those attending entertainment venues and those intermingling in places where many were close together while unmasked,” Ferrer said. “Some of the recent shifts associated with widespread community transmission likely reflect the fact that we’re now seeing increased transmission among those whose jobs are putting them in close contact with others and who often live in crowded housing.”
Coronavirus case rates are higher among Latino and Black residents compared with white residents. For every 100,000 Latino residents, there were about 3,600 cases reported over a two-week period, and for every 100,000 Black residents, there were 2,700 cases. For every 100,000 Asian American residents, there were 2,300, and for every 100,000 white residents, there were 2,100.
Vaccination rates among L.A. County’s Latino and Black residents remain lower than other racial and ethnic groups. For those 5 and older, 58% of Black and 64% of Latino residents have received at least one dose; 77% of white, 82% of Native American and 87% of Asian American residents have received one.
Health officials have expressed concern about low vaccination rates among children 5 to 11. Only 29% of children in that age group in L.A. County have received at least one dose. By comparison, in San Francisco, 71% of children in that age group have received at least one dose of vaccine.
“It creates significant vulnerability for increased spread, not just among children, but among all of us,” Ferrer said.
The hospital COVID census in San Bernardino County has nearly tripled from 398 before Christmas to 1,107 as of Jan. 13.
With coronavirus transmission rates still extraordinarily high, health experts and officials are still urging people to do all they can to avoid getting infected: Wear masks in indoor public settings and avoid nonessential gatherings, especially indoors and in places where masks are not worn, such as in restaurants and bars.
In a study published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology Letters, Yale University researchers recently found that restaurant servers were exposed most frequently to airborne coronavirus particles compared with other workers in high-risk settings, according to a report summarizing the results of a study using mobile viral detectors clipped on their shirt collar for five days that accumulated virus-laden aerosols and droplets.
Of the 62 clips that were returned to researchers, five collected coronavirus. Four of them were worn by restaurant servers; and one by a homeless shelter staff member. Two of the sensors by restaurant waiters had exceptionally high viral load, “suggestive of close contact with one or more infected individuals,” the report said.
None of the clips worn by healthcare workers collected coronavirus, which researchers expected because of hospitals’ strict infection control requirements. The clips were in circulation in Connecticut in the first half of 2021.
Officials are urging people to get up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccinations and booster shots. While 3 million L.A. County residents 12 and older have received their booster shot, an additional 3 million are eligible but haven’t yet received one.
There is mounting evidence that putting off a booster shot is risky, as immunity to COVID-19 wanes in the months following the completion of the primary vaccination series.
Data presented by Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, showed that for the Omicron variant, two doses of the primary Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccination series resulted in effectiveness against hospitalization falling to just 57% more than six months after the second dose. A booster shot pushed vaccine effectiveness against hospitalization up to 90%.
That study didn’t examine the single-shot vaccine from Johnson & Johnson, which does not use the same mRNA technology as Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. However, U.S. health officials in December said it’s generally preferable to use either of the mRNA vaccines over Johnson & Johnson — for both the primary series and booster doses — citing the risk for rare but serious blood clots.
MOSCOW/BRUSSELS, Jan 24 (Reuters) – NATO said on Monday it was putting forces on standby and reinforcing eastern Europe with more ships and fighter jets, in what Russia denounced as Western “hysteria” in response to its build-up of troops on the Ukraine border.
The U.S. Department of Defense in Washington said about 8,500 American troops were put on heightened alert and were awaiting orders to deploy to the region, should Russia invade Ukraine.
Tensions are high after Russia massed an estimated 100,000 troops in reach of its neighbour’s border, surrounding Ukraine with forces from the north, east and south.
Russia denies planning an invasion and Moscow is citing the Western response as evidence that Russia is the target, not the instigator, of aggression.
President Joe Biden, pushing for transatlantic unity, held an 80-minute secure video call with a number of European leaders on Monday from the White House Situation Room to discuss the Ukraine crisis.
Biden told reporters “I had a very, very, very good meeting” with the Europeans, which included the leaders of Germany, France, Italy, Britain and Poland. He said there was “total unanimity.”
A White House statement said the leaders “discussed their joint efforts to deter further Russian aggression against Ukraine, including preparations to impose massive consequences and severe economic costs on Russia for such actions as well as to reinforce security on NATO’s eastern flank.”
Welcoming a series of deployments announced by alliance members in recent days, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg earlier said NATO would take “all necessary measures.”
“We will always respond to any deterioration of our security environment, including through strengthening our collective defence,” Stoltenberg said in a statement.
He told a news conference that the enhanced presence on NATO’s eastern flank could also include the deployment of battlegroups in the southeast of the alliance.
So far, NATO has about 4,000 troops in multinational battalions in Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia and Poland, backed by tanks, air defences and intelligence and surveillance units.
U.S. officials said the Pentagon was finalising efforts to identify specific units that it could deploy to NATO’s eastern flank.
One of the officials said up to 5,000 could be deployed, while a NATO diplomat said Washington was considering gradually transferring some troops stationed in western Europe to eastern Europe in the coming weeks. read more
Denmark, Spain, France and the Netherlands were all planning or considering sending troops, planes or ships to eastern Europe, NATO said. Ukraine shares borders with four NATO countries: Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania.
A Polish official said Warsaw would draw the line at sending troops to Ukraine.
GROWING TENSIONS
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A service member of the Ukrainian armed forces walks at combat positions near the line of separation from Russian-backed rebels near Horlivka in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, January 22, 2022. Picture taken January 22, 2022. Picture taken REUTERS/Anna Kudriavtseva/File Photo
As tensions grow, Britain said it was withdrawing some staff and dependents from its embassy in Ukraine, a day after the United States said it was ordering diplomats’ family members to leave. U.S. diplomats are being allowed to leave voluntarily.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused the West of “hysteria” and putting out information “laced with lies”.
“As for specific actions, we see statements by the North Atlantic Alliance about reinforcement, pulling forces and resources to the eastern flank. All this leads to the fact that tensions are growing,” he said.
“This is not happening because of what we, Russia, are doing. This is all happening because of what NATO and the U.S. are doing and due to the information they are spreading.”
Global stock markets skidded as the prospect of a Russian attack quashed demand for riskier assets such as bitcoin, and bolstered the dollar and oil. The rouble hit a 14-month low against the dollar, and Russian stocks and bonds tumbled. read more
Russia has used its troop build-up to draw the West into discussions after presenting demands to redraw Europe’s security map. It wants NATO never to admit Ukraine and to pull back troops and weapons from former Communist countries in eastern Europe that joined it after the Cold War.
Washington says those demands are non-starters but it is ready to discuss other ideas on arms control, missile deployments and confidence-building measures.
Russia is awaiting a written U.S. response this week after talks last Friday – the fourth round this month – produced no breakthrough.
‘PAINFUL, VIOLENT AND BLOODY’
Asked whether he thought an invasion was imminent, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told broadcasters that intelligence was “pretty gloomy on this point” but that “sense can still prevail.”
He repeated Western warnings that invading Ukraine would be “a painful, violent and bloody business” for Russia. read more
The United States and the European Union, wary of Russia’s intentions since it seized Crimea and backed separatists fighting government forces in eastern Ukraine in 2014, have told Russia it will face crippling penalties if it attacks again.
EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels warned Russia it would face “massive” consequences, but are divided over how tough to be on Moscow and did not say what the consequences might be. read more
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told EU President Charles Michel, who was also on the call with Biden, that it was important for Kyiv that the EU showed unity.
“Ukraine will not fall for provocations, and together with its partners, will remain calm and restrained,” his office said.
The European Commission, the EU executive body, proposed a 1.2-billion euro ($1.36-billion) financial aid package to help Ukraine mitigate the effects of the conflict. read more
A Russian delegation source said political advisers from Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany would meet in Paris on Wednesday for talks on resolving the conflict in eastern Ukraine, in which some 15,000 people have been killed since 2014. Previous efforts have failed to yield any breakthrough.
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