Scientists argue that there could be 120,000 new deaths from the novel coronavirus during a second wave of infections, which is expected to arrive this winter. When asked for a somewhat reasonable worst-case scenario, researchers came up with some scary figures: they mentioned that virus-related deaths only in hospitals could go from 24,500 to as many as 251,000. The peak of the epidemic in the United Kingdom is thought to occur in January and early February.
How Is the UK Looking Now?
So far, there have been about 44,830 official deaths in the United Kingdom, but the number of deaths has slowed a lot in recent times. In July, the death toll was very small, getting only to about 1,100. This estimate does not account for human factors such as vaccines, treatments and lockdowns. Regarding these human factors, epidemiologists argue that the 120,000 death toll can be greatly reduced if action is taken immediately.
The Report
In the report that was compiled by the scientists, which was requested by the chief scientific adviser of the United Kingdom, Sir Patrick Vallance, it is highlighted that there is a very high degree of uncertainty regarding how the COVID-19 pandemic will take place over this coming winter.
What Are We Worried about?
There are a lot of studies that all mention that the virus can survive for a much longer period of time if the conditions are cold and the chances for the novel coronavirus to spread are higher if people spend more time indoors. The main concern that scientists have at the moment is that the NHS might fall under a lot pressure. That is both because of the second wave of COVID-19, and because of seasonal flu and regular hospital stuff. That is truly something we can all be afraid off, considering the fact that the health service is already being gravely disrupted after the first wave of the pandemic.
