23 March 2021: Will it take a hard lockdown to reverse the rising trend in the corona figures?

23 March 2021: More than 400 patients with Covid were hospitalised over the past weekend. 2,247 patients are currently in hospital with Covid.  569 are in intensive care. New cases are up too and the figures are rising faster by the day.
In the week to 19 March 4060 people tested positive. The figure is up 41% on the week. Clearly, the rising trend in coronavirus figures will require stricter measures. According to some virologists Belgium must consider coronavirus fighting measures similar to those in neighbouring countries, including Germany and France, where 15 departments, including Paris, were recently placed in a four-week lockdown. It is up to politicians to put together a package of measures that can counter the rising trend, but the longer one waits, the more difficult that becomes, and the more drastic the measures will then have to be. Meanwhile, vaccinations continue but by the time all seniors and risk patients will be immunised the month of May will be drawing to a close. Yesterday, 10.5% of the population over 18 years of age has received the first dose of a vaccine. The second dose was administered to around 437,000 people, around 4.8% of the adult population. There is some slight light appearing, but we still have a long way to go. Today’s picture was taken in 2009 when I did a trail in the Swiss Alps - Visperteminen, Canton of Valais, Switzerland.