News: Saturday, January 9th, 2021

Czech health authorities foresee especially mild flu season

No influenza outbreak has been recorded this winter season and experts expect at most a mild spread of the virus, a State Institute of Public Health (SZÚ) spokesperson informed ČTK.

The flu usually spreads in January or early February and affects up to 1 in 10 adults and 1 in 5 children. Last January, some 1,050 people per 100,000 inhabitants of the Czech Republic had acute respiratory infections.

Measures in place to combat the coronavirus pandemic, such as working from home, distance learning in schools and wearing facemasks, have contributed significantly to the low incidence of influenza infections this year, the SZÚ said.

1,241 Covid-19 cases recorded in Prague on Friday, fewest this week

Labs in Prague detected 1,241 cases of coronavirus infection on Friday, the fewest so far this week. However, the infection rate in the Czech capital remains at the highest level since March, with 17,434 cases, Ministry of Health data show.

Nationwide on Friday, there were 13,029 confirmed new cases of Covid-19, about 1,800 fewer than the day before. Some 132,725 people in the country currently have the virus, a record high to date.

In the first seven days of January, 70 people died of Covid-19 in Prague, including 16 on Friday. The capital recorded record numbers of newly infected at the end of 2020. On December 29, hygienists registered over 2,000 new cases in the capital for the first time, and on January 5, Prague recorded a new high of 2,056 positive tests.

Police close roads to overwhelmed Czech mountain resorts

Mountain resorts in the Czech Republic were flooded with tourists on Saturday, despite ski lifts and restaurants being closed due to anti-coronavirus measures. The influx, prompted by snowfall, led to traffic jams and illegal parking in some areas.

Police closed all access roads to Bedřichov in the Jablonec region and another to Pustevny in the Beskydy Mountains. Car parks quickly filled in areas of the Krkonoše and Orlické Mountains and Šumava. Most people went there to cross-country ski, sled or hike.

Czech folk singer Antonín ‘Tony’ Linhart of Pacifik dies aged 80

Antonín (Tony) Linhart, a folk and tramp guitarist, singer and songwriter, founder of the group Pacifik, has died at the age of 80. His passing on Friday was announced by Country Radio, where Linhart had worked as a radio presenter.

Country Radio dedicated an hour programme to Toník and Pacifik on Friday and plans to air special segments on Monday and Tuesday, including his long-running show Echoes of the Settlement Fires.

Third annual national Czech bird census underway

The third annual national bird census got underway on Friday and concludes on Sunday, during which Czechs are encouraged to document, for one hour, all birds that visit feeders near their homes.

The census, organized by the Czech Ornithological Society, aims to collect data on the species present during the winter. The first two censuses, observing some 250,000 birds in total, showed that the Great Tit was the most common type found in gardens, followed by the Tree Sparrow and House Sparrow.

Bankrupt publisher Mladá fronta online unit sold to Internet Into in auction

The online division of the Mladá fronta publishing house, which is in bankruptcy, sold for 15.8 million crowns in an auction on Friday, marginally above the starting price.

The buyer is Internet Info, a publisher of specialised sites about IT, the Internet, telecommunications, new technologies, business, finance, taxes, digital broadcasting and lifestyle.

Mladá fronta, which published the economic weekly Euro and other magazines, closed in December with some 400 million crowns in debt accumulated losses of almost 200 million crowns. Its books division launched around 200 new titles a year. Previous owner František Savov, who lives in London, is accused of tax fraud in the Czech Republic.

Weather 

Cloudy skies, freezing temperatures and occasional light snow are in the forecast for Sunday. Daytime highs should range from -3 to 1 degrees Celsius.