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Danish mobile users receive coronavirus text message from police

On Saturday evening, the Danish National Police announced on Twitter that they would send a text message to all mobile subscribers in Denmark with a reminder to abide by the authorities’ instructions and keep at a distance.

Danish mobile users receive coronavirus text message from police
Illustration photo: Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix

The wording of the message was:

“Coronavirus spredes lige nu i Danmark. Hold afstand og vis hensyn – også i solskin. Ellers kan vi ikke bremse smitten. God weekend. Politiet.”

“Coronavirus is spreading in Denmark right now. Keep your distance and show consideration – also when the sun shines. Otherwise, we will not be able to slow the spread of the disease. Enjoy your weekend. The police.”

Danish National Police contacted the four major telecommunications companies – TDC, Telia, 3 and Telenor – and asked them to ensure that the text messages are sent.

As almost 10 million text messages need to be sent, it cannot be done at once. So many people won’t receive their text message straight away, the National Police have said.

On Saturday, Uffe Stormly, a police inspector at the Danish National Police emergency centre, told Ritzau that police are trying to get the message out as wide as possible, for people to keep at a distance and show consideration.

 

 

On Friday almost everyone in Denmark over the age of 15 received a message on eBoks about the coronavirus. The National Board of Health chose to send out a letter explaining the symptoms of Covid-19 and how to act to help reduce coronavirus infection.

The police text message comes after several days of good weather, where there have been several instances of people gathering in parks, beaches and other outdoor spaces in groups of more than ten. For now, the police have not charged anyone for gatherings of more than ten but they can give a fine of 1500 kroner.

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COVID-19

IN NUMBERS: Has the Omicron Covid-19 wave peaked in Denmark?

The number of new Covid-19 infections fell on Saturday for the second day in a row, following a three-day plateau at the start of last week. Has the omicron wave peaked?

IN NUMBERS: Has the Omicron Covid-19 wave peaked in Denmark?
Graffiti in the Copenhagen hippy enclave of Christiania complaining of Omicron's impact on Christmas. Photo: Philip Davali/Scanpix

How many cases, hospitalisations and deaths are there in Denmark? 

Denmark registered 12,588 new cases in the 24 hours leading up to 2pm on Saturday, down from the 18,261 registered on in the day leading up to Friday at 2pm, which was itself a decline from the record 28,283 cases recorded on Wednesday. 

The cases were identified by a total of 174,517 PCR tests, bringing the positive percentage to 7.21 percent, down from the sky high rates of close to 12 percent seen in the first few days of January. 

The number of cases over the past seven days is lower than the week before in almost every municipality in Denmark, with only Vallensbæk, Aarhus, Holseterbro, Skanderborg, Hjørring, Vordingborg,  Ringkøbing, Kolding, Assens, Horsens, Thisted, and Langeland reporting rises. 

Hospitalisations have also started to fall, with some 730 patients being treated for Covid-10 on Saturday, down from 755 on Friday. On Tuesday, 794 were being treated for Covid-19 in Danish hospitals, the highest number since the peak of the 2020-21 winter wave.

The only marker which has not yet started to fall is the number of deaths, which tends to trail infections and hospitalisations. 

In the 24 hours leading up to 2pm on Saturday, Denmark registered 28 deaths with Covid-19, the highest daily number recorded since 20 January 2021, when 29 people died with Covid-19 (although Denmark’s deadliest day was the 19 January 2021, when 39 people died). 

How does Denmark compare to other countries in Europe? 

Over the last seven days, Denmark has had the highest Covid-19 case rate of any country in Europe bar Ireland. The number of new infections in the country has climbed steadily since the start of December, apart from a brief fall over Christmas. 

So does this mean the omicron wave has peaked? 

Maybe, although experts are not sure. 

“Of course, you can hope for that, but I’m not sure that is the case,” said Christian Wejse, head of the Department for Infectious Diseases at Aarhus University Hospital. “I think it is too early to conclude that the epidemic has peaked.”

He said that patients with the Omicron variant were being discharged more rapidly on average than had been the case with those who had the more dangerous Delta variant. 

“Many admissions are relatively short-lived, thankfully. This is because many do not become that il, and are largely hospitalized because they are suffering with something else. And if they are stable and do not need oxygen, then they are quickly discharged again.” 

Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said during a visit to an event held by the Social Liberal party that the latest numbers made her even more optimistic about the coming month. 

“We have lower infection numbers and the number of hospitalisations is also plateauing,” she said. “I think we’re going to get through this winter pretty well, even if it will be a difficult time for a lot of people, and we are beginning to see the spring ahead of us, so I’m actually very optimistic.” 

She said that she had been encouraged by the fact that Omicron was a “visibly less dangerous variant if it is not allowed to explode.” 

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