The illuminated ball made of Waterford crystal panels slid down its poll at the midnight hour in Times Square, but only 15 000 spectators were allowed into the official viewing area instead of the usual 58 000.
New York City reported a record 44 000 cases on Wednesday and another 43 000 on Thursday, leading some critics to question whether the celebrations should go ahead at all. Elsewhere around the globe, events were scaled back or cancelled outright, such as with the traditional fireworks over the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur.
Earlier, Britain published a study of a million cases that found those with Omicron were around a third as likely to need hospitalisation as those with the previously dominant Delta variant. The results were “in keeping with the encouraging signs we have already seen,” said Susan Hopkins, chief medical adviser at the UK Health Security Agency.
“I’m just hoping that Cape Town goes back to the old Cape Town that we all knew about,” said Michael Mchede, manager of a Hard Rock cafe by the white sands of Camps Bay Beach, who was thrilled to get the place ready to host an unexpected bash.
Thanks I don't see African cities on your reportings. I only see your favorites.