KUWAIT: Two kids ride their bicycles in a park before the curfew hours. - Photo by Fouad Al-Shaikh

KUWAIT: Despite the partial curfew that started three weeks ago, and despite the ban on using bicycles and scooters during the two-hour walking period, stores that sell them have been witnessing unprecedented sales during the past few days. Al-Qabas Arabic daily reported yesterday that bicycle and scooter stores in Sharq are crowded and health protocols are not necessarily being observed all the time. A store manager said the coronavirus outbreak and the curfew have increased demand for bicycles. He said international manufacturers no longer can meet the demand and there is difficulty in importing bikes in the present time, while preorders may take a year to deliver.

Patients in ICUs

Separately, Jahra Hospital Director Dr Ali Al-Mutairi said taking the COVID-19 vaccine while continuously complying with health protocols are the means of emerging from the pandemic. He warned through Al-Rai Arabic daily yesterday against laxity in implementing the measures as infection rates and hospital admittance are rising, which reflects in turn on intensive care admissions.

Mutairi said the vaccine, besides its role in protecting individuals and the society against infection, protects against being in need of intensive care, and this is clear when considering the number of current cases in the ICU, the majority of whom did not get the vaccine. He said there is not a single case in intensive care from among those who completed their vaccination. Mutairi said it is necessary to increase awareness among citizens.

Ministry of Health spokesman Dr Abdullah Al-Sanad had announced Sunday 1,121 new COVID-19 cases, seven deaths and 1,236 recoveries registered in the previous 24 hours. The caseload amounted to 228,299, recoveries to 212,596 and death toll to 1,286 as of Sunday. The number of patients in ICUs stood Sunday at 251, while total patients receiving health care reached 14,417, Al-Sanad added.

Account hacked

In other news, the official Twitter account of Kuwait's Education Ministry was hacked by an unknown person who posted tweets calling for canceling in campus exams for grade 12 students, and instead having students do their finals online. The Center For Government Communication later confirmed on its Twitter that the education ministry's account was hacked, adding that the ministry was working on retrieving it. The education ministry had earlier announced that this year's final exams for grade 12 students will take place in classes under strict health precautions.