BuzzFeed NYC Holiday Party Becomes a Covid Superspreader Event, Several Employees Infected: Insider

Several BuzzFeed staffers have been infected with Covid-19 following the company’s Holiday party in Manhattan last week, according to a report from Insider.

Three BuzzFeed employees who tested positive following the party told Insider that they were vaccinated and received their booster shots prior to contracting Covid-19 at the event, and are experiencing mild symptoms.

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“BuzzFeed requires vaccinations for staffers, and partygoers had to present their vaccination cards to get into the event,” Perlberg reported, noting that CEO Jonah Peretti was in attendance. “Two days before the party, BuzzFeed updated its rules to require masks ‘unless you are actively eating or drinking.'”

https://www.mediaite.com/entertainment/buzzfeed-nyc-holiday-party-becomes-a-covid-superspreader-event-several-employees-infected-insider/

William S Burroughs - A Thanksgiving Prayer

Job Opening: DuPage County Democratic Party social media director

Mary Lemanski, social media manager for the Democratic Party of DuPage County, was let go from her position Monday morning after posting a series of tweets comparing Kyle Rittenhouse to the driver of the SUV that sped through barricades and struck dancers, musicians and others during a Waukesha, Wisconsin, Christmas parade.

“It was probably just self-defense #Wisconsin #KyleRittenhouse,” Lemanski tweeted about the tragedy that left five dead and 40 injured.

She followed up the statement, replying to a comment deriding her opinion and saying, “I’m sad. I’m sad anytime anyone dies. I just believe in Karma and this came around quick on the citizens of Wisconsin.”

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/breaking/ct-dupage-county-democrat-mary-lemanski-twitter-waukesha-20211122-4msgxxirpnb27blxuycxzxyfny-story.html

COVID-19 hospitalizations rising in parts of California, a potentially ominous sign

Source: Los Angeles Times

COVID-19 hospitalizations have risen significantly in the Inland Empire and Central Valley, bringing new concerns about whether the shift represents a precursor to a wider spike in COVID-19 in California as the winter holidays approach.

Across the state, both cases and hospitalizations hit a plateau after months of decline. Hospitalizations have remained fairly flat in some areas with relatively high vaccination rates, including the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles County.

But in some areas with lower vaccination rates, such as Riverside, San Bernardino and Fresno counties, conditions are deteriorating, with hospitalizations up by more than 20% in recent weeks. And even some places with relatively high vaccination rates are seeing COVID-19 hospitalizations tick upward; in Orange County, COVID-19 hospitalizations are up by 16% since Halloween.

Health officials have been warning about a potential new rise in COVID-19 in California as seniors who got their shots last winter — and haven't received a booster shot — may start to see their immunity wane, leaving them exposed to greater risk for infection and hospitalization, and as people gather indoors more as the weather cools and the holidays approach.

Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/covid-19-hospitalizations-rising-in-parts-of-california-a-potentially-ominous-sign/ar-AAQuNrG

'Grave concern' over Covid in Europe as German cases soar

Source: AFP

Frankfurt (AFP) – The World Health Organization expressed "grave concern" Thursday over the rising pace of coronavirus infections in Europe, as Germany registered its biggest daily increase since the start of the pandemic.

"We are, once again, at the epicentre," WHO Europe director Hans Kluge told a press conference.

He warned that according to "one reliable projection" the current trajectory would mean "another half a million Covid-19 deaths" by February.

Alarm bells were ringing especially in Germany, the European Union's most populous country, where the number of new cases over the past 24 hours soared to almost 34,000 on Thursday -- an all-time high, according to the Robert Koch Institute health agency.

Read more: https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20211104-grave-concern-over-covid-in-europe-as-german-cases-soar

A potentially faster-spreading Delta variant, AY.4.2, has been spotted in 8 states

Source: CBS News

A potentially faster-spreading "sub-lineage" of the coronavirus Delta variant named AY.4.2 has been spotted by labs in at least 8 states, and health authorities in the United Kingdom say they are investigating a growing share of cases from this strain of the virus.

Labs in California, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, North Carolina, Rhode Island and Washington state, plus the District of Columbia, have so far spotted at least one case of AY.4.2.

While it may spread somewhat faster, health authorities have not found evidence of more severe illness caused by the variant, and they say current vaccines remain effective against it.

The sub-lineage has remained a small fraction of circulating cases in the U.S. for several weeks, but American health officials say they are already ramping up efforts to study the new Delta variant descendant.

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/covid-delta-plus-variant-ay-4-2-states/

New Delta Sub-variant Rising in UK

A new variant of the Delta coronavirus strain thought to account for 6 per cent of all new UK cases is being closely monitored by scientists.

Sub-variant AY. 4.2 could be 10 to 15 per cent more infectious than the original Delta variant that was first spotted in India in December and has become the dominant Covid-19 strain.

Francois Balloux, director of the University College London Genetics Institute, published an analysis on Twitter suggesting that the data implied it was “intrinsically more transmissible”.

He said that research showed AY. 4.2 could be the most infectious variant of the virus to date. It is expected to be placed under investigation by the World Health Organisation.

https://www.thenationalnews.com/coronavirus/2021/10/19/new-delta-variant-monitored-as-uk-covid-19-cases-rise/

Homeland Security secretary tests positive for Covid-19

Source: CNN

(CNN)Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who is vaccinated, tested positive for Covid-19 on Tuesday morning, according to department spokesperson Marsha Espinosa.

"Secretary Mayorkas tested positive this morning for the COVID-19 virus after taking a test as part of routine pre-travel protocols. Secretary Mayorkas is experiencing only mild congestion; he is fully vaccinated and will isolate and work at home per CDC protocols and medical advice. Contact tracing is underway," Espinosa said in a statement.

The secretary was scheduled to travel to Colombia along with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, but he is now working from home.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/19/politics/homeland-security-secretary-mayorkas-covid-positive/index.html

Feds to Deploy Non-Toxic Gas in NYC Transit Locations and Landmarks

New York City's response plans for a chemical or biological attack will be put to the test in the coming weeks as part of a federal preparedness study.

The MTA says the Department of Homeland Security working alongside a team of researchers and city agencies will deploy a non-toxic gas this month at about 120 locations across the city.

Most of the locations will be above ground, including some parks. A number of below-ground subway stations will also be included, though details on which ones weren't known.

The tests will be conducted on five separate days between Oct. 18 and 29.

https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/homeland-security-deploying-non-toxic-gas-in-nyc-trains-next-week-for-terror-readiness-study/3316701/

'There will be things that people can't get,' at Christmas, White House warns

Source: Reuters

WASHINGTON, Oct 12 (Reuters) - White House officials, scrambling to relieve global supply bottlenecks choking U.S. ports, highways and railways, warn that Americans may face higher prices and some empty shelves this Christmas season.

The supply crisis, driven in part by the global COVID-19 pandemic, not only threatens to dampen U.S. spending at a critical time, it also poses a political risk for President Joe Biden.

The latest Reuters/Ipsos poll shows the economy continues to be the most important issue for Democrats and Republicans alike.

The White House has been trying to tackle inflation-inducing supply bottlenecks of everything from meat to semiconductors, and formed a task force in June that meets weekly and named a "bottleneck" czar to push private-sector companies to ease snarls.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/americans-may-not-get-some-christmas-treats-white-house-officials-warn-2021-10-12/