Russia's capital city of Moscow has entered into a 10-day partial lockdown as COVID-19 deaths and cases surge. Other cities are expected to follow suit as officials attempt to mitigate the spread of the new Delta variant wave.
On Thursday, Russian health officials reported a record-high 40,096 new COVID-19 cases and 1,159 deaths. These were the highest numbers reported over a 24-hour period in months.
Officials have blamed the recent surge on its people's reluctance to get vaccinated despite it having ample supplies of its locally made Sputnik V vaccine. As of this week, only around a third of the population is fully vaccinated.
President Vladimir Putin said that he doesn't understand why "intelligent people with a good education" continue to resist being vaccinated. He said the country's vaccine is "reliable and efficient" in protecting them against the virus.
Russia has recorded more than 235,000 fatalities since the outbreak began, the highest figure in Europe. Despite repeated assurances that the virus was well under control, officials have abruptly reintroduced restrictions due to the increased spread of the Delta variant.
With health experts warning that COVID-19 wards were approaching capacity, Putin declared a countrywide "non-working week" from Oct. 30 to Nov. 7. He has given regional governors the right to impose new limitations in order to halt the virus' spread.
Police in Stavropol, a city in southern Russia, have set up checkpoints and are now requiring travelers to provide evidence of vaccination. Authorities in Khakassia, a republic in eastern Siberia, have imposed a 10 p.m. curfew and halted all public transportation.
The partial lockdown in Moscow has put a stop to the sense of normalcy that had settled over the capital in recent months. Unvaccinated residents over 60 have been ordered to stay at home for the next four months. Mayor Sergei Sobyanin has also issued an order to shut down schools. Workers have been sent home from their workplaces. The metro is now mostly deserted.
Starting Thursday, city restaurants, bars, cafés, hairdressers, gyms, movie theaters, and - for reasons few understand - vehicle repair businesses have been ordered to close down. However, theaters and museums were allowed to remain open.
