UK says 12 deaths and 104 people hospitalized by Omicron

FILE PHOTO: People queue to receive COVID-19 vaccine and booster doses, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, at a walk-in vaccination center at Saint Thomas’ Hospital in London, Britain, December 15, 2021. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls

LONDON — Twelve people have died with the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, and 104 are currently in hospital with it, Britain’s Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab told Times Radio on Monday.

This comes as Britain reported a surge in cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant on Saturday, December 18, which government advisors said could be just the tip of the iceberg, and London’s mayor declared a “major incident” to help the city’s hospitals cope.

The number of Omicron cases recorded across the country hit almost 25,000 as of 1800 GMT on Friday, up by more than 10,000 cases from 24 hours earlier, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said.

Seven people believed to have had the Omicron variant had died as of Thursday, up from one death in the UKHSA’s previous data which ran up to Tuesday. Admissions to hospitals of people thought to have the variant increased to 85 from 65.

READ: Omicron coronavirus cases surge in UK, scientists see bigger wave

The government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) said it was “almost certain” that hundreds of thousands of people were being infected with the variant every day and were not being picked up in the figures.

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