21 October 2020: A turning point is only expected around 1 November

21 October 2020: Update on The Corona Pandemic – The number of coronavirus infections in Belgium continues to rise considerably. It is predicted that there will be more than 500 COVID-19 patients on the intensive care wards by the end of the week. Knowing that the maximum capacity of ICU wards in Belgium is 2,000 and that it always takes at least two weeks before measures start to have an impact on the evolution of the curves it goes without saying that we are cutting it very close. There were a couple of additional bummers yesterday… First, our laboratories are no longer able to cope with the increased demand of PCR tests. Therefore, the government announced that people will only get tested when they are showing symptoms. Being tested upon return from a red travel zone or after being in contact with someone who had tested positive, used to be mandatory. Hopefully the strategy of testing as many people as possible will resume as soon as the labs have cleared their backlog. Second, all schools in the Flemish part of Belgium will go into code orange. The aim is that all children can continue to attend school. However, additional measures will become into force and if schools wish they can organise distance learning. The corona crisis is a long ride against the wind – De Haan, Belgium.