Inside, doctors give a woman CPR in a futile attempt to save her life. A hospital source told CNN that she died shortly after being brought inside.
In the four hours CNN spent Tuesday morning outside Hilda Freire Hospital, three patients with Covid-19 died.
Chaos has become the norm here this month. What is happening in this unequaled hospital, surrounded by the Amazon rainforest, is a small example of a new massive outbreak of Covid-19 that covers northwestern Brazil.
Not far from Iranduba is the epicenter of this new outbreak, Manaus. The capital of the state of Amazonas is often called the gateway to the Amazon, its main connections to the rest of the world by plane or boat.
If the name of the city seems familiar, it could be because it was the scene of one of the worst outbreaks of Covid-19 in the world in April and May. The health care system has collapsed, and images of thousands of freshly dug graves have become emblematic of Brazil’s coronavirus crisis, with the death toll second only to the United States.
The current situation is worse than ever. January proved to be by far the deadliest month of the Manaus pandemic.
In May, 348 people were buried here, the worst month to date. In the first three weeks of January alone, this number was 1,333.
While genomic testing is not widespread in Manaus, scientists tell CNN that the evidence suggests a new variant of the virus mixed with government inaction to create a perfect tragic storm.
A new variant of coronavirus
Four epidemiologists told CNN that a new variant of coronavirus, called P.1, is probably leading the new round of devastation that hit Manaus.
“I’m not usually alarmist about these kinds of things, but I’m worried about what we’re seeing in Brazil right now,” said Scott Hensley, a viral immunologist at the University of Pennsylvania.
Scientists say that the new version of the virus was born in Brazil and, although there is still much to learn about it, there are several reasons for concern.
First, the new data suggest that they are more transmissible.
Researchers at Fiocruz, the Brazilian health research institution, studied newly infected people in Manaus. Of the 90 who have participated in the study so far, 66 have had infections caused by this new variant, according to Fiocruz researcher Felipe Gomes Naveca.
Although not conclusive, experts say it gives credence to the idea that this variant is more easily transmissible.
“If it has the ability to spread more effectively, it (probably) could become more and more dominant,” Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNN’s Erin Burnett on Tuesday.
Researchers in Fiocruz also documented at least one case of a person who tested positive for the new variant while still having antibodies from a previous Covid-19 infection. This could suggest that people can be reinfected with the new variant, although one case is far from evidence.
“The fact that we are seeing infections right now indicates that the circulating virus is either more transmissible, or it can steal antibodies, or a combination of both,” Hensley said.
The good news? For now, it appears that current Covid-19 vaccines can still protect against the mutation pattern seen in the new variant – although all epidemiologists interviewed said much more research is needed.
It’s not just the option
To blame the last outbreak simply on the option would be to miss the forest for trees. The new emerging variant is simply part of a larger system that has failed the people of the state of Amazonas.
Start with the lack of a coordinated federal response, a hallmark of the administration of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro throughout the pandemic.
After the first wave, it was painfully obvious that Manaus’ health care system could not cope with such a crisis.
But as the worst days of April, May, and June have subsided, the federal government has not doubled its response here to ensure the city will never again be critically deprived of fans, drugs. , oxygen and bed space.
Instead, a sense of gratitude crept in, as leaders like Jair Bolsonaro called the idea of a second wave a lie. In November, he told people to essentially accept the virus and not be afraid of the virus “like in a motherland.”
Now, critics are wondering whether similar satisfaction could have slowed the Federal Health Ministry’s response to warning signs this month of a second crisis in Manaus.
Federal investigators are examining why Health Minister Eduardo Pazuello did not send aid to the city sooner after an increase in cases was documented in December and then again after an oxygen supplier reported problems in January.
“Although there has been an increase in the number of Covid-19 cases [in Manaus] in the week of Christmas 2020, the Minister of Health has chosen to send representatives of the ministry to Manaus only until January 3, one week after being informed about the disaster situation, “said a report by the country’s attorney general, which was forwarded Of the Federal Supreme Court of Brazil.
Pazuello defended his actions, blaming the version of a disaster that he claims no one could have foreseen.
“This was a situation completely unknown to everyone,” he said on Tuesday. – It was too fast.
The scene has been prepared
But a basic understanding of how viruses evolve would have suggested that this very situation was approaching.
As the blockades were eased towards the end of last year, business reopened and people filled the streets. Despite warnings from several experts that the virus is spreading, a more laissez faire attitude towards the virus has spread in Manaus.
Pervasive was now the demonstrably false notion that the first massive wave of Manaus de Covid-19 reached enough population to create the herd’s immunity.
“People started living as if we had a normal life, without using masks with a lot of crowds,” said Naveca, researcher Fiocruz. “I saw that a lot at Christmas and at the end of the year.”
As previously reported by CNN, even when scientific warnings appeared, officials in the state of Manaus and Amazonas faced pressure – both from the public and from Bolsonaro’s own statements – to refrain from imposing strict blocking measures.
But around the world, whenever existing strains of Covid-19 were allowed to continue to circulate, new foundations were laid.
“The virus has the opportunity to explore all these different genetic types, and those that are favored are now selected,” Hensley said.
In other words, the more the virus is allowed to spread, the more likely it is to evolve and form new variants.
CNN’s Natalie Gallón and journalists Marcia Reverdosa and Eduardo Duwe contributed to the report.