New York: New cluster of coronavirus cases in Brooklyn causes 'significant concern'

New York City’s Health Department on September 22 identified a new cluster of COVID-19 cases in Brooklyn. They said that a surge in infections there and at some other places is "cause for significant concern”. According to a tally by John Hopkins University, the United States has seen a total number of 7,097,937 cases with 205,471 fatalities with New York being the hotspot for the novel coronavirus. 

Read: WHO: World Sees Record Weekly Surge In COVID-19 Cases With A Decrease In Death Rate

New cluster in Brooklyn

According to the reports by the New York times, a spokesman for the city’s Health Department, Patrick Gallahue said that the authorities are concerned about how the novel coronavirus is spreading among the orthodox communities. He added that the authorities will continue to work with their partners to ensure that health guidance is followed. It was also put forward that the increasing cases in New York are coming from Orthodox Jewish communities.

The current data showed an increase in fresh cases, especially in neighbourhoods like Williamsburg, Midwood, Borough Park, Bensonhurst, Kew Gardens and Edgemere Far Rockaway in Queens. According to the Health Department, a section of southern and central Brooklyn that included three neighborhoods — Midwood, Borough Park and Bensonhurst recorded that 4.7 per cent of the coronavirus tests were positive. The health department has regarded these cases as a single cluster, called the ‘Ocean Parkway Cluster’.

Read: New York City Police Officer Accused Of Being An 'illegal Agent' For China

Gallahue also warned that the surge in cases could lead to widespread community transmission. Therefore, an action needs to be taken before the deadly virus spreads to other neighborhoods, he added. The COVID-19 pandemic which saw its first outbreak in a wet market in Wuhan, China last year has now spread all across the world. US President Donald Trump has been severely criticized for his way of handling the spread of virus. However, he has repeatedly blamed China for allowing the virus to spread and also for withholding crucial information from the world during the early weeks of the outbreak. 

Read: New York’s Metropolitan Museum Of Art Reopens With Safety Protocols Amid COVID-19

Also Read: Ginsburg To Be Remembered With Statue In Her Native Brooklyn

(Image Credits: Unsplash)