BERLIN (AP) — The head of the World Health Organization says he’s worried about the omicron and delta variants of COVID-19 producing a “tsunami” of cases between them, but he’s still hopeful that the world will put the worst of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic">pandemic</a>&nbsp;behind it in 2022.

Two years after the coronavirus first emerged, top officials with the U.N. health agency cautioned that it’s still too early to be reassured by initial data suggesting that omicron, the latest variant, leads to milder disease. First reported last month in southern Africa, it is already the dominant variant in the United States and parts of Europe.

And after 92 of the WHO’s 194 member countries missed a target to vaccinate 40% of their populations by the end of this year, Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged everyone to make a “new year’s resolution” to get behind a campaign to vaccinate 70% of countries’ populations by the beginning of July.

According to WHO’s figures, the number of COVID-19 cases recorded worldwide increased by 11% last week compared with the previous week, with nearly 4.99 million newly reported from Dec. 20-26. New cases in Europe — which accounted for more than half of the total — were up 3% while those in the Americas rose 39% and there was a 7% increase in Africa. The global gain followed a gradual increase since October.

“I’m highly concerned that omicron, being more transmissible (and) circulating at the same time as delta, is leading to a tsunami of cases,” Tedros said at an online news conference. That, he said, will put “immense pressure on exhausted health workers and health systems on the brink of collapse.”

WHO said in its weekly epidemiological report that the “overall risk” related to omicron “remains very high.” It cited “consistent evidence” that it has a growth advantage over the delta variant.

It noted that a decline in case incidence has been seen in South Africa, and that early data from that country, the U.K. and Denmark suggest a reduced risk of hospitalization with omicron, but said that more data is needed.

WHO’s emergencies chief, Dr. Michael Ryan, underlined that note of caution. He said it will be important in coming weeks to “suppress transmission of both variants to the minimum that we can.”

Ryan said that omicron infections began largely among young people, “but what we haven’t seen is the omicron wave fully established in the broader population. And I’m a little nervous to make positive predictions until we see how well the vaccine protection is going to work in those older and more vulnerable populations.”

WHO officials didn’t offer specific comments on decisions by the U.S. and other countries to reduce self-isolation periods. Ryan said “these are judgement calls that countries make” — taking into account scientific, economic and other factors. He noted that the average incubation period to date has been around five to six days.

“We need to be careful about changing tactics and strategies immediately on the basis of what we’re seeing” about omicron, Ryan said.

Tedros renewed longstanding warnings that “ending health inequity remains the key to ending the pandemic.” He said that missing the target of getting 40% of populations vaccinated this year “is not only a moral shame — it cost lives and provided the virus with opportunities to circulate unchecked and mutate.”

Countries largely missed the target because of limited supply to low-income nations for most of the year and then vaccines arriving close to their expiry date, without things such as syringes, he said.

All the same, “I still remain optimistic that this can be the year we can not only end the acute stage of the pandemic, but we also chart a path to stronger health security,” Tedros said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640816747031.png" alt="Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged everyone to make a “new year’s resolution” to get behind a campaign to vaccinate 70% of countries’ populations by the beginning of July-courtesy photo" />
 <figcaption>Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged everyone to make a “new year’s resolution” to get behind a campaign to vaccinate 70% of countries’ populations by the beginning of July-courtesy photo</figcaption>
 </figure>BERLIN (AP) — The head of the World Health Organization says he’s worried about the omicron and delta variants of COVID-19 producing a “tsunami” of cases between them, but he’s still hopeful that the world will put the worst of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic">pandemic</a>&nbsp;behind it in 2022.Two years after the coronavirus first emerged, top officials with the U.N. health agency cautioned that it’s still too early to be reassured by initial data suggesting that omicron, the latest variant, leads to milder disease. First reported last month in southern Africa, it is already the dominant variant in the United States and parts of Europe.And after 92 of the WHO’s 194 member countries missed a target to vaccinate 40% of their populations by the end of this year, Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged everyone to make a “new year’s resolution” to get behind a campaign to vaccinate 70% of countries’ populations by the beginning of July.According to WHO’s figures, the number of COVID-19 cases recorded worldwide increased by 11% last week compared with the previous week, with nearly 4.99 million newly reported from Dec. 20-26. New cases in Europe — which accounted for more than half of the total — were up 3% while those in the Americas rose 39% and there was a 7% increase in Africa. The global gain followed a gradual increase since October.“I’m highly concerned that omicron, being more transmissible (and) circulating at the same time as delta, is leading to a tsunami of cases,” Tedros said at an online news conference. That, he said, will put “immense pressure on exhausted health workers and health systems on the brink of collapse.”WHO said in its weekly epidemiological report that the “overall risk” related to omicron “remains very high.” It cited “consistent evidence” that it has a growth advantage over the delta variant.It noted that a decline in case incidence has been seen in South Africa, and that early data from that country, the U.K. and Denmark suggest a reduced risk of hospitalization with omicron, but said that more data is needed.WHO’s emergencies chief, Dr. Michael Ryan, underlined that note of caution. He said it will be important in coming weeks to “suppress transmission of both variants to the minimum that we can.”Ryan said that omicron infections began largely among young people, “but what we haven’t seen is the omicron wave fully established in the broader population. And I’m a little nervous to make positive predictions until we see how well the vaccine protection is going to work in those older and more vulnerable populations.”WHO officials didn’t offer specific comments on decisions by the U.S. and other countries to reduce self-isolation periods. Ryan said “these are judgement calls that countries make” — taking into account scientific, economic and other factors. He noted that the average incubation period to date has been around five to six days.“We need to be careful about changing tactics and strategies immediately on the basis of what we’re seeing” about omicron, Ryan said.Tedros renewed longstanding warnings that “ending health inequity remains the key to ending the pandemic.” He said that missing the target of getting 40% of populations vaccinated this year “is not only a moral shame — it cost lives and provided the virus with opportunities to circulate unchecked and mutate.”Countries largely missed the target because of limited supply to low-income nations for most of the year and then vaccines arriving close to their expiry date, without things such as syringes, he said.All the same, “I still remain optimistic that this can be the year we can not only end the acute stage of the pandemic, but we also chart a path to stronger health security,” Tedros said.___

WHO chief hopeful world will put the worst of pandemic behind it in 2022

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Betty White, whose saucy, up-for-anything charm made her a television mainstay for more than 60 years, whether as a man-crazy TV hostess on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” or the loopy housemate on “The Golden Girls,” has died. She was 99.

White’s death was confirmed by her longtime agent Jeff Witjas in a phone call Friday with publicist Pam Golum. White would have turned 100 on Jan. 17, 2022.

She launched her TV career in daytime talk shows when the medium was still in its infancy and endured well into the age of cable and streaming. Her combination of sweetness and edginess gave life to a roster of quirky characters in shows from the sitcom “Life With Elizabeth” in the early 1950s to oddball Rose Nylund in “The Golden Girls” in the ’80s to “Boston Legal,” which ran from 2004 to 2008.

But it was in 2010 that White’s stardom erupted as never before.

In a Snickers commercial that premiered during that year’s Super Bowl telecast, she impersonated an energy-sapped dude getting tackled during a backlot football game.

“Mike, you’re playing like Betty White out there,” jeered one of his chums. White, flat on the ground and covered in mud, fired back, “That’s not what your girlfriend said!”

The instantly-viral video helped spark a Facebook campaign called “Betty White to Host SNL (please?)!,” whose half-million fans led to her co-hosting “Saturday Night Live” in a much-watched, watch-hailed edition that Mother’s Day weekend. The appearance won her a seventh Emmy award.

A month later, cable’s TV Land premiered “Hot In Cleveland,” the network’s first original scripted series, which starred Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves and Wendie Malick as three past-their-prime show-biz veterans who move to Cleveland to escape the youth obsession of Hollywood. They move into a home being looked after by an elderly Polish widow — a character, played by White, who was meant to appear only in the pilot episode.

But White stole the show, and the salty Elka Ostrovsky became a key part of the series, an immediate hit. She was voted the Entertainer of the Year by members of The Associated Press.

“It’s ridiculous,” White said of the honor. “They haven’t caught on to me, and I hope they never do.”

By then, White had not only become the hippest star around, but also a role model for how to grow old joyously.

“Don’t try to be young,” she told The AP. “Just open your mind. Stay interested in stuff. There are so many things I won’t live long enough to find out about, but I’m still curious about them.”

Such was her popularity that even White’s birthday became a national event: In January 2012, NBC aired “Betty White’s 90th Birthday Party” as a star-studded prime-time special. She would later appear in such series as “Bones” and Fireside Chat With Esther” and in 2019 gave voice to one of the toys, “Bitey White,” in “Toy Story 4.”

White remained youthful in part through her skill at playing bawdy or naughty while radiating niceness. The horror spoof “Lake Placid” and the comedy “The Proposal” were marked by her characters’ surprisingly salty language. And her character Catherine Piper killed a man with a skillet on “Boston Legal.”

But she almost wasn’t cast as “Happy Homemaker” Sue Ann Nivens in “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” in 1973. She and her husband, Allen Ludden, were close friends of Moore and Moore’s then-husband, producer Grant Tinker. It was feared that if White failed on the show, which already was a huge hit, it would be embarrassing for all four. But CBS casting head Ethel Winant declared White the logical choice. Originally planned as a one-shot appearance, the role of Sue Ann (which humorously foreshadowed Martha Stewart) lasted until Moore ended the series in 1977.

“While she’s icky-sweet on her cooking show, Sue is really a piranha type,” White once said. The role brought her two Emmys as supporting actress in a comedy series.

In 1985, White starred on NBC with Bea Arthur, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty in “The Golden Girls.” Its cast of mature actresses, playing single women in Miami retirement, presented a gamble in a youth-conscious industry. But it proved a solid hit and lasted until 1992.

White played Rose, a gentle, dim widow who managed to misinterpret most situations. She drove her roommates crazy with off-the-wall tales of childhood in fictional St. Olaf, Minnesota, an off-kilter version of Lake Wobegon.

The role won her another Emmy, and she reprised it in a short-lived spinoff, “The Golden Palace.”

After her co-star Arthur died in 2009, White told Entertainment Tonight: “She showed me how to be very brave in playing comedy. I’ll miss that courage.”

White’s other TV series included “Mama’s Family,” as Vicki Lawrence’s irascible mother; “Just Men,” a game show in which women tried to predict answers to questions directed to male celebrities; and “Ladies Man,” as the catty mother of Alfred Molina.

“Just Men” brought her a daytime Emmy, while she won a fourth prime time Emmy in 1996 for a guest shot on “The John Larroquette Show.”

She also appeared in numerous miniseries and TV movies and made her film debut as a female U.S. senator in Otto Preminger’s 1962 Capitol Hill drama “Advise and Consent.”

White began her television career as $50-a-week sidekick to a local Los Angeles TV personality in 1949. She was hired for a local daytime show starring Al Jarvis, the best-known disc jockey in Los Angeles.

It was then she got a tip to start lying about her age.

“We are so age-conscious in this country,” she said in a 2011 interview with The Associated Press. “It’s silly, but that’s the way we are. So I was told, ‘Knock four years off right now. You’ll be blessing yourself down the road.’

“I was born in 1922. So I thought, ‘I must always remember that I was born in 1926.’ But then I would have to do the math. Finally, I decided to heck with it.”

White proved to be a natural for the new medium. She was bright, pretty and likable, with a dimpled, eye-crinkling smile. A 1951 Los Angeles Times headline said: “Betty White Hailed as TV’s Busiest Gal.”

“I did that show 5½ hours a day, six days a week, for 4½ years,” she recalled in 1975. Jarvis was replaced by actor Eddie Albert, and when he went to Europe for the film “Roman Holiday,” she headed the show.

A sketch she had done with Jarvis turned into a syndicated series, “Life With Elizabeth,” which won her first Emmy. For a time she did interviews on “The Betty White Show” in the daytime, filmed the series at night and often turned up on a late-night talk show. She also appeared on commercials and every New Year’s narrated the Pasadena Rose Parade.

With the glib tongue and quick responses nurtured in the Jarvis years, she was a welcome guest on “I’ve Got a Secret,” “To Tell the Truth,” “What’s My Line” and other game shows — all the way up to the 2008 “Million Dollar Password,” which revived the game once hosted by Ludden, whom she had met when a contestant on his original “Password.”

That was in 1961, and the next year, while touring in summer theater during television’s off season, she starred with Ludden — by then a widower with three children — in the comedy “Critic’s Choice.”

White, who had claimed to be “militantly single” since a 1947-1949 marriage, weakened in her resolve.

“I had always said on `The Tonight Show’ and everywhere else that I would never get married again,” she told a reporter in 1963. “But Allen outnumbered me. He started in and even the children got in the act. And I surrendered — willingly.”

The marriage lasted from 1963 until his death from cancer in 1981.

Off-screen, White tirelessly raised money for animal causes such as the Morris Animal Foundation and the Los Angeles Zoo. In 1970-1971, she wrote, produced and hosted a syndicated TV show, “The Pet Set,” to which celebrities brought their dogs and cats. She wrote a 1983 book titled “Betty White’s Pet Love: How Pets Take Care of Us,” and, in 2011, published “Betty &amp; Friends: My Life at the Zoo.”

Her devotion to pets was such that she declined a plum role in the hit 1997 movie “As Good As It Gets.” She objected to a scene in which Jack Nicholson drops a small dog down a laundry chute.

In her 2011 book “If You Ask Me (And Of Course You Won’t),” White explained the origins of her love for dogs. During the Depression, her dad made radios to sell to make extra money. But since few people had money to buy the radios, he willingly traded them for dogs, which, housed in kennels in the backyard, at times numbered as many as 15 and made White’s happy childhood even happier.

Are there any critters she doesn’t like?

“No,” White told the AP. “Anything with a leg on each corner.”

She was born Betty Marion White in Oak Park, Illinois, and the family moved to Los Angeles when she was a toddler.

“I’m an only child, and I had a mother and dad who never drew a straight line: They just thought funny,” she told The Associated Press in 2015. “We’d sit around the breakfast table and then we’d start kicking it around. My dad was a salesman and he would come home with jokes. He’d say, `Sweetheart, you can take THAT one to school. But I wouldn’t take THIS one.′ We had such a wonderful time.”

Her early ambition was to be a writer, and she wrote her grammar school graduation play, giving herself the leading role.

At Beverly Hills High School, her ambition turned to acting, and she appeared in several school plays. Her parents hoped she’d go to college, but instead she took roles in a small theater and played bit parts in radio dramas.

Explaining in 2011 how she kept up her frantic pace even as an octogenarian, she explained that she only needed four hours of sleep each night.

And when asked how she had managed to be universally beloved during her decades-spanning career, she summed up with a dimpled smile: “I just make it my business to get along with people so I can have fun. It’s that simple.”

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Betty White, whose saucy, up-for-anything charm made her a television mainstay for more than 60 years, whether as a man-crazy TV hostess on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” or the loopy housemate on “The Golden Girls,” has died. She was 99.White’s death was confirmed by her longtime agent Jeff Witjas in a phone call Friday with publicist Pam Golum. White would have turned 100 on Jan. 17, 2022.She launched her TV career in daytime talk shows when the medium was still in its infancy and endured well into the age of cable and streaming. Her combination of sweetness and edginess gave life to a roster of quirky characters in shows from the sitcom “Life With Elizabeth” in the early 1950s to oddball Rose Nylund in “The Golden Girls” in the ’80s to “Boston Legal,” which ran from 2004 to 2008.But it was in 2010 that White’s stardom erupted as never before.In a Snickers commercial that premiered during that year’s Super Bowl telecast, she impersonated an energy-sapped dude getting tackled during a backlot football game.“Mike, you’re playing like Betty White out there,” jeered one of his chums. White, flat on the ground and covered in mud, fired back, “That’s not what your girlfriend said!”The instantly-viral video helped spark a Facebook campaign called “Betty White to Host SNL (please?)!,” whose half-million fans led to her co-hosting “Saturday Night Live” in a much-watched, watch-hailed edition that Mother’s Day weekend. The appearance won her a seventh Emmy award.A month later, cable’s TV Land premiered “Hot In Cleveland,” the network’s first original scripted series, which starred Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves and Wendie Malick as three past-their-prime show-biz veterans who move to Cleveland to escape the youth obsession of Hollywood. They move into a home being looked after by an elderly Polish widow — a character, played by White, who was meant to appear only in the pilot episode.But White stole the show, and the salty Elka Ostrovsky became a key part of the series, an immediate hit. She was voted the Entertainer of the Year by members of The Associated Press.“It’s ridiculous,” White said of the honor. “They haven’t caught on to me, and I hope they never do.”By then, White had not only become the hippest star around, but also a role model for how to grow old joyously.“Don’t try to be young,” she told The AP. “Just open your mind. Stay interested in stuff. There are so many things I won’t live long enough to find out about, but I’m still curious about them.”Such was her popularity that even White’s birthday became a national event: In January 2012, NBC aired “Betty White’s 90th Birthday Party” as a star-studded prime-time special. She would later appear in such series as “Bones” and Fireside Chat With Esther” and in 2019 gave voice to one of the toys, “Bitey White,” in “Toy Story 4.”White remained youthful in part through her skill at playing bawdy or naughty while radiating niceness. The horror spoof “Lake Placid” and the comedy “The Proposal” were marked by her characters’ surprisingly salty language. And her character Catherine Piper killed a man with a skillet on “Boston Legal.”But she almost wasn’t cast as “Happy Homemaker” Sue Ann Nivens in “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” in 1973. She and her husband, Allen Ludden, were close friends of Moore and Moore’s then-husband, producer Grant Tinker. It was feared that if White failed on the show, which already was a huge hit, it would be embarrassing for all four. But CBS casting head Ethel Winant declared White the logical choice. Originally planned as a one-shot appearance, the role of Sue Ann (which humorously foreshadowed Martha Stewart) lasted until Moore ended the series in 1977.“While she’s icky-sweet on her cooking show, Sue is really a piranha type,” White once said. The role brought her two Emmys as supporting actress in a comedy series.In 1985, White starred on NBC with Bea Arthur, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty in “The Golden Girls.” Its cast of mature actresses, playing single women in Miami retirement, presented a gamble in a youth-conscious industry. But it proved a solid hit and lasted until 1992.White played Rose, a gentle, dim widow who managed to misinterpret most situations. She drove her roommates crazy with off-the-wall tales of childhood in fictional St. Olaf, Minnesota, an off-kilter version of Lake Wobegon.The role won her another Emmy, and she reprised it in a short-lived spinoff, “The Golden Palace.”After her co-star Arthur died in 2009, White told Entertainment Tonight: “She showed me how to be very brave in playing comedy. I’ll miss that courage.”White’s other TV series included “Mama’s Family,” as Vicki Lawrence’s irascible mother; “Just Men,” a game show in which women tried to predict answers to questions directed to male celebrities; and “Ladies Man,” as the catty mother of Alfred Molina.“Just Men” brought her a daytime Emmy, while she won a fourth prime time Emmy in 1996 for a guest shot on “The John Larroquette Show.”She also appeared in numerous miniseries and TV movies and made her film debut as a female U.S. senator in Otto Preminger’s 1962 Capitol Hill drama “Advise and Consent.”White began her television career as $50-a-week sidekick to a local Los Angeles TV personality in 1949. She was hired for a local daytime show starring Al Jarvis, the best-known disc jockey in Los Angeles.It was then she got a tip to start lying about her age.“We are so age-conscious in this country,” she said in a 2011 interview with The Associated Press. “It’s silly, but that’s the way we are. So I was told, ‘Knock four years off right now. You’ll be blessing yourself down the road.’“I was born in 1922. So I thought, ‘I must always remember that I was born in 1926.’ But then I would have to do the math. Finally, I decided to heck with it.”White proved to be a natural for the new medium. She was bright, pretty and likable, with a dimpled, eye-crinkling smile. A 1951 Los Angeles Times headline said: “Betty White Hailed as TV’s Busiest Gal.”“I did that show 5½ hours a day, six days a week, for 4½ years,” she recalled in 1975. Jarvis was replaced by actor Eddie Albert, and when he went to Europe for the film “Roman Holiday,” she headed the show.A sketch she had done with Jarvis turned into a syndicated series, “Life With Elizabeth,” which won her first Emmy. For a time she did interviews on “The Betty White Show” in the daytime, filmed the series at night and often turned up on a late-night talk show. She also appeared on commercials and every New Year’s narrated the Pasadena Rose Parade.With the glib tongue and quick responses nurtured in the Jarvis years, she was a welcome guest on “I’ve Got a Secret,” “To Tell the Truth,” “What’s My Line” and other game shows — all the way up to the 2008 “Million Dollar Password,” which revived the game once hosted by Ludden, whom she had met when a contestant on his original “Password.”That was in 1961, and the next year, while touring in summer theater during television’s off season, she starred with Ludden — by then a widower with three children — in the comedy “Critic’s Choice.”White, who had claimed to be “militantly single” since a 1947-1949 marriage, weakened in her resolve.“I had always said on `The Tonight Show’ and everywhere else that I would never get married again,” she told a reporter in 1963. “But Allen outnumbered me. He started in and even the children got in the act. And I surrendered — willingly.”The marriage lasted from 1963 until his death from cancer in 1981.Off-screen, White tirelessly raised money for animal causes such as the Morris Animal Foundation and the Los Angeles Zoo. In 1970-1971, she wrote, produced and hosted a syndicated TV show, “The Pet Set,” to which celebrities brought their dogs and cats. She wrote a 1983 book titled “Betty White’s Pet Love: How Pets Take Care of Us,” and, in 2011, published “Betty &amp; Friends: My Life at the Zoo.”Her devotion to pets was such that she declined a plum role in the hit 1997 movie “As Good As It Gets.” She objected to a scene in which Jack Nicholson drops a small dog down a laundry chute.In her 2011 book “If You Ask Me (And Of Course You Won’t),” White explained the origins of her love for dogs. During the Depression, her dad made radios to sell to make extra money. But since few people had money to buy the radios, he willingly traded them for dogs, which, housed in kennels in the backyard, at times numbered as many as 15 and made White’s happy childhood even happier.Are there any critters she doesn’t like?“No,” White told the AP. “Anything with a leg on each corner.”Then what about snakes?“Ohhh, I LOVE snakes!”She was born Betty Marion White in Oak Park, Illinois, and the family moved to Los Angeles when she was a toddler.“I’m an only child, and I had a mother and dad who never drew a straight line: They just thought funny,” she told The Associated Press in 2015. “We’d sit around the breakfast table and then we’d start kicking it around. My dad was a salesman and he would come home with jokes. He’d say, `Sweetheart, you can take THAT one to school. But I wouldn’t take THIS one.′ We had such a wonderful time.”Her early ambition was to be a writer, and she wrote her grammar school graduation play, giving herself the leading role.At Beverly Hills High School, her ambition turned to acting, and she appeared in several school plays. Her parents hoped she’d go to college, but instead she took roles in a small theater and played bit parts in radio dramas.Explaining in 2011 how she kept up her frantic pace even as an octogenarian, she explained that she only needed four hours of sleep each night.And when asked how she had managed to be universally beloved during her decades-spanning career, she summed up with a dimpled smile: “I just make it my business to get along with people so I can have fun. It’s that simple.”___

Betty White, TV’s Golden Girl, dies at 99

KANSAS CITY (AP) —More canceled flights frustrated air travelers on the final day of 2021 and appeared all but certain to inconvenience hundreds of thousands more over the New Year’s holiday weekend.

Airlines&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-lifestyle-health-travel-business-4c22883188cf61e68824b6936ef1955b">blamed many of the cancellations on crew shortages related to the spike in COVID-19 infections</a>, with wintry weather in parts of the United States compounding the problem.

By midday Friday on the East Coast, airlines had scrubbed more than 1,300 U.S. flights and 2,700 worldwide, according to tracking service FlightAware. That compared with about 1,400 U.S. cancellations for all of Thursday.

That pushed the total U.S. cancellations since Christmas Eve above 9,000.

The disruptions come just as travel numbers climb higher going into the New Year’s holiday weekend. Since Dec. 16, more than 2 million travelers a day on average have passed through U.S. airport security checkpoints, an increase of nearly 100,000 a day since November.

Canceled flights began rising shortly before Christmas, most notably for United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and JetBlue Airways.

On Friday, United canceled more than 200 flights, or 11% of its schedule — and that doesn’t include cancellations on the United Express regional affiliate. CommutAir, which operates many United Express flights, scrubbed one-third of its schedule by midday, according to FlightAware figures.

JetBlue canceled more than 140 flights, or 14% of its schedule, and Delta grounded more than 100, or 5% of its flights by midday Friday.

Other forms of transportation are also being hammered by the surge in virus cases. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday that it is monitoring more than 90 cruise ships because of COVID-19 outbreaks.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-lifestyle-health-business-travel-c092c07a571566dd2e32163fa1f3a593">The health agency warned people not to go on cruises</a>, even if they are fully vaccinated against the virus.

The remnants of the delta variant and the rise of the new omicron variant pushed the seven-day rolling average of new daily COVID-19 cases in the U.S. above 350,000, nearly triple the rate of just two weeks ago, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640977323462.png" alt="New Year's Eve flights&nbsp; courtesy Flight View&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>New Year's Eve flights&nbsp; courtesy Flight View&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY (AP) —More canceled flights frustrated air travelers on the final day of 2021 and appeared all but certain to inconvenience hundreds of thousands more over the New Year’s holiday weekend.Airlines&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-lifestyle-health-travel-business-4c22883188cf61e68824b6936ef1955b">blamed many of the cancellations on crew shortages related to the spike in COVID-19 infections</a>, with wintry weather in parts of the United States compounding the problem.By midday Friday on the East Coast, airlines had scrubbed more than 1,300 U.S. flights and 2,700 worldwide, according to tracking service FlightAware. That compared with about 1,400 U.S. cancellations for all of Thursday.That pushed the total U.S. cancellations since Christmas Eve above 9,000.The disruptions come just as travel numbers climb higher going into the New Year’s holiday weekend. Since Dec. 16, more than 2 million travelers a day on average have passed through U.S. airport security checkpoints, an increase of nearly 100,000 a day since November.Canceled flights began rising shortly before Christmas, most notably for United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and JetBlue Airways.On Friday, United canceled more than 200 flights, or 11% of its schedule — and that doesn’t include cancellations on the United Express regional affiliate. CommutAir, which operates many United Express flights, scrubbed one-third of its schedule by midday, according to FlightAware figures.JetBlue canceled more than 140 flights, or 14% of its schedule, and Delta grounded more than 100, or 5% of its flights by midday Friday.Other forms of transportation are also being hammered by the surge in virus cases. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday that it is monitoring more than 90 cruise ships because of COVID-19 outbreaks.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/coronavirus-pandemic-lifestyle-health-business-travel-c092c07a571566dd2e32163fa1f3a593">The health agency warned people not to go on cruises</a>, even if they are fully vaccinated against the virus.The remnants of the delta variant and the rise of the new omicron variant pushed the seven-day rolling average of new daily COVID-19 cases in the U.S. above 350,000, nearly triple the rate of just two weeks ago, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University.

Wave of canceled flights from omicron closes out 2021

OSAGE COUNTY, Kan.—A former University of Kansas basketball player 21-year-old&nbsp;<a href="https://kuathletics.com/sports/mbball/roster/season/2020-21/player/157526-2-2-2-2/">Gethro Muscadin </a>was critically injured in an accident on the Kansas Turnpike just after 3a.m. Thursday in Osage County.

On Friday, the Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2018 Ford passenger vehicle driven by Alaeyia Howard, 21, Wichita, was southbound on Interstate 335 in Osage County. The vehicle left the road, rolled and came to rest in a fence line.&nbsp;

EMS transported Howard and Muscadin to Stormont Vail in Topeka. He was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

The crash log does not list where Muscadin was living. He is native of Haiti and<a href="https://kuathletics.com/sports/mbball/roster/season/2020-21/player/157526-2-2-2-2/"> played in 11 games</a> during the 20-21 season for the Jayhawks before transferring to the University of New Mexico. The 6-foot-10 Muscadin left the Lobo basketball program earlier this month, according to the school's basketball web site.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640971200715.png" alt="Gethro Muscadin photo courtesy KU Athletics" />
 <figcaption>Gethro Muscadin photo courtesy KU Athletics</figcaption>
 </figure>OSAGE COUNTY, Kan.—A former University of Kansas basketball player 21-year-old&nbsp;<a href="https://kuathletics.com/sports/mbball/roster/season/2020-21/player/157526-2-2-2-2/">Gethro Muscadin </a>was critically injured in an accident on the Kansas Turnpike just after 3a.m. Thursday in Osage County.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Last night Gethro Muscadin and a friend were involved in a serous one car accident. He, his friend, and their families need a miracle. Please lift them up as Gethro fights for his life.&mdash; Bill Self (@CoachBillSelf) <a href="https://twitter.com/CoachBillSelf/status/1476676037723541516?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 30, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>On Friday, the Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2018 Ford passenger vehicle driven by Alaeyia Howard, 21, Wichita, was southbound on Interstate 335 in Osage County. The vehicle left the road, rolled and came to rest in a fence line.&nbsp;EMS transported Howard and Muscadin to Stormont Vail in Topeka. He was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">🙏 Lobo fans: please pray for Gethro Muscadin, who was in a serious car accident last night. Every prayer helps.&mdash; Lobo Basketball (@UNMLoboMBB) <a href="https://twitter.com/UNMLoboMBB/status/1476647356137304076?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 30, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>The crash log does not list where Muscadin was living. He is native of Haiti and<a href="https://kuathletics.com/sports/mbball/roster/season/2020-21/player/157526-2-2-2-2/"> played in 11 games</a> during the 20-21 season for the Jayhawks before transferring to the University of New Mexico. The 6-foot-10 Muscadin left the Lobo basketball program earlier this month, according to the school's basketball web site.

KHP releases details of crash that injured ex-KU basketball player

KANSAS CITY (AP) — A doctor who is charged with 11 counts of child sex abuse should remain in an Arkansas county jail for now because he has COVID-19, the Missouri Attorney General's office said in a court document filed Thursday.

David Smock, of Stockton, Missouri&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/springfield-missouri-arkansas-crime-arrests-5e6b6de6d155bcc8aa189caf18393b00">was arrested Tuesday&nbsp;</a>in Harrison, Arkansas, and has been jailed there since then.

His attorneys have asked that he be released on bond or his own recognizance. They argue he has health conditions, no prior criminal convictions, no history of mental health problems and “does have the means to pay his bond.”

A hearing on the bond motion is scheduled for Monday in Cedar County Circuit Court.

Smock is the longtime physician at the Agape Boarding School, Christian school in Stockton. He&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/crime-education-arrests-missouri-springfield-82fb42da6ca67eab3a03238e14421ec3">faces charges</a>&nbsp;in Cedar and Greene counties.

A Greene County judge ruled last week that when Smock was arrested, he should be held without bond pending trial, saying it was reasonable to believe he would not appear on a summons and is a danger to others.

Schmitt argued in his motion that Smock has a long record of sexual abuse of minor boys, that dates to 1988 and extends from California and Arizona to Missouri.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640791631814.png" alt="Smock-Harrison County Arkansas Sheriff" />
 <figcaption>Smock-Harrison County Arkansas Sheriff</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY (AP) — A doctor who is charged with 11 counts of child sex abuse should remain in an Arkansas county jail for now because he has COVID-19, the Missouri Attorney General's office said in a court document filed Thursday.David Smock, of Stockton, Missouri&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/springfield-missouri-arkansas-crime-arrests-5e6b6de6d155bcc8aa189caf18393b00">was arrested Tuesday&nbsp;</a>in Harrison, Arkansas, and has been jailed there since then.His attorneys have asked that he be released on bond or his own recognizance. They argue he has health conditions, no prior criminal convictions, no history of mental health problems and “does have the means to pay his bond.”A hearing on the bond motion is scheduled for Monday in Cedar County Circuit Court.Smock is the longtime physician at the Agape Boarding School, Christian school in Stockton. He&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/crime-education-arrests-missouri-springfield-82fb42da6ca67eab3a03238e14421ec3">faces charges</a>&nbsp;in Cedar and Greene counties.A Greene County judge ruled last week that when Smock was arrested, he should be held without bond pending trial, saying it was reasonable to believe he would not appear on a summons and is a danger to others.Schmitt argued in his motion that Smock has a long record of sexual abuse of minor boys, that dates to 1988 and extends from California and Arizona to Missouri.

AG: Christian boarding school doctor in child sex case should remain jailed

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Doctors in Kansas have a simple message for those who are feeling ill: Get tested.

COVID-19 cases are surging across the country, and Kansas is no exception. To make matters worse, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists Kansas as among the five states and territories with the highest flu activity levels in the country, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cjonline.com/story/news/coronavirus/2021/12/30/my-symptoms-cold-flu-covid-omicron-kansas-doctors-say-test/9055272002/" target="_blank">Topeka Capital-Journal</a>&nbsp;reported Thursday.

Dana Hawkinson, an infectious disease specialist at The University of Kansas Health System, said testing is important to determine if those who are feeling sick have COVID-19, the flu or a simple cold. He said all are viruses that can present in similar ways.

“There is absolutely no way based on symptoms that you can distinguish between a common cold, omicron and delta,” said Steve Stites, chief medical officer at KU’s Kansas City, Kan., hospital.

Rachael Liesman, director of KU’s clinical and molecular microbiology laboratories, said the flu began circulating in early December, mostly the H3N2 variety “which tends to be a bit more of a severe flu year than other years.”

Getting tested for COVID-19 is proving challenging. Several testing sites in Kansas are reporting long lines, and at-home testing kits are sold out at many stores.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/8/1630352557049.jpeg" alt="Dana Hawkinson, an infectious disease specialist at The University of Kansas Health System, said testing is important to determine if those who are feeling sick have COVID-19, the flu or a simple cold. He said all are viruses that can present in similar ways." />
 <figcaption>Dana Hawkinson, an infectious disease specialist at The University of Kansas Health System, said testing is important to determine if those who are feeling sick have COVID-19, the flu or a simple cold. He said all are viruses that can present in similar ways.</figcaption>
 </figure>TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Doctors in Kansas have a simple message for those who are feeling ill: Get tested.COVID-19 cases are surging across the country, and Kansas is no exception. To make matters worse, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists Kansas as among the five states and territories with the highest flu activity levels in the country, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cjonline.com/story/news/coronavirus/2021/12/30/my-symptoms-cold-flu-covid-omicron-kansas-doctors-say-test/9055272002/" target="_blank">Topeka Capital-Journal</a>&nbsp;reported Thursday.Dana Hawkinson, an infectious disease specialist at The University of Kansas Health System, said testing is important to determine if those who are feeling sick have COVID-19, the flu or a simple cold. He said all are viruses that can present in similar ways.Other doctors agree.“There is absolutely no way based on symptoms that you can distinguish between a common cold, omicron and delta,” said Steve Stites, chief medical officer at KU’s Kansas City, Kan., hospital.Rachael Liesman, director of KU’s clinical and molecular microbiology laboratories, said the flu began circulating in early December, mostly the H3N2 variety “which tends to be a bit more of a severe flu year than other years.”Getting tested for COVID-19 is proving challenging. Several testing sites in Kansas are reporting long lines, and at-home testing kits are sold out at many stores.

Kansas doctors urge those feeling ill to get tested

BARTON COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating two suspects for a series of burglaries in Barton County.

Over the past few weeks, police responded to several residential and business burglaries in Great Bend, according to a media release.

 Items taken during these burglaries included business checks, cash, firearms, a vehicle and miscellaneous personal property items.

On Dec. 22, the Barton County Sheriff’s Office received a report of an abandoned vehicle along U.S. Highway 56, southwest of Great Bend. 

Deputies found stolen property from some of the previous burglaries inside the vehicle. Great Bend Police Department detectives impounded the vehicle and obtained a search warrant to recover the stolen property.

On Dec. 24, detectives received information about the location of a stolen Ford Mustang Cobra. With this information, the police and the sheriff’s deputies were able to recover the vehicle from a rural residence in Barton County.

On Dec. 29, the police department was able to obtain search warrants for two residences in Great Bend, where additional stolen property was possibly located. Search warrants were executed at 1821 Jackson and 2624 27th Street, Apartment A.&nbsp; Police located additional stolen property, methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia during their search.

Police arrested Garrett Roddey, at 2624 27th in Great Bend and booked him into the Barton County Jail on requested charges of burglary, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia, and no drug tax stamp.

Gefferey Palacio, age 18, who was already in custody at the Barton County Jail on unrelated charges, was booked on an additional requested charges of burglary.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640901075542.jpeg" alt="Garrett Roddey-Barton Co." />
 <figcaption>Garrett Roddey-Barton Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>BARTON COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating two suspects for a series of burglaries in Barton County.Over the past few weeks, police responded to several residential and business burglaries in Great Bend, according to a media release. Items taken during these burglaries included business checks, cash, firearms, a vehicle and miscellaneous personal property items.On Dec. 22, the Barton County Sheriff’s Office received a report of an abandoned vehicle along U.S. Highway 56, southwest of Great Bend. Deputies found stolen property from some of the previous burglaries inside the vehicle. Great Bend Police Department detectives impounded the vehicle and obtained a search warrant to recover the stolen property.On Dec. 24, detectives received information about the location of a stolen Ford Mustang Cobra. With this information, the police and the sheriff’s deputies were able to recover the vehicle from a rural residence in Barton County.On Dec. 29, the police department was able to obtain search warrants for two residences in Great Bend, where additional stolen property was possibly located. Search warrants were executed at 1821 Jackson and 2624 27th Street, Apartment A.&nbsp; Police located additional stolen property, methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia during their search.Police arrested Garrett Roddey, at 2624 27th in Great Bend and booked him into the Barton County Jail on requested charges of burglary, possession of methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia, and no drug tax stamp.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640901109415.png" alt="Gefferey Palacio-Barton Co." />
 <figcaption>Gefferey Palacio-Barton Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>Gefferey Palacio, age 18, who was already in custody at the Barton County Jail on unrelated charges, was booked on an additional requested charges of burglary.

Deputies find stolen property in abandoned vehicle on Kan. highway

MANHATTAN —The Riley County Police Department has&nbsp;responded to six&nbsp;fentanyl&nbsp;overdoses in just the past two weeks.&nbsp;&nbsp;

While none of the six resulted in death, these overdoses came from fake, pressed prescription pills containing&nbsp;fentanyl&nbsp;mostly oxycodone and Xanax.&nbsp;

Riley County Police&nbsp;emphasize&nbsp;that&nbsp;individuals&nbsp;who overdose&nbsp;are&nbsp;not&nbsp;suspects&nbsp;in&nbsp;their&nbsp;investigations. The goal is to identify, apprehend and prosecute the distributor and/distribution network.&nbsp;

Fentanyl is now the number one cause of death for Americans age 18-45. Fentanyl overtook and doubled the number two cause - suicide, in just one year.&nbsp;

Distribution of a controlled substance causing great bodily harm is a&nbsp;Level&nbsp;V&nbsp;felony. Distribution of a controlled substance causing death is a&nbsp;Level&nbsp;I&nbsp;felony.&nbsp;

Please talk to your friends and family about&nbsp;fentanyl, it could save their life.&nbsp;

If you have any information about the distribution of these counterfeit pills you can submit a tip anonymously through Crime Stoppers at (785) 539-7777 or contact RCPD at (785) 537-2112 and ask to speak with the Special Investigations Unit (SIU).&nbsp;

Below you can see visual examples of the differences between legitimate and counterfeit Oxycodone, Xanax and Adderall, courtesy of the DEA.

 Criminal drug networks mass-produce these fake pills and falsely market them as legit prescription pills. The images are examples and don't represent the many variations of counterfeit pills. The only safe medications are ones prescribed by a trusted medical professional and dispensed by a licensed pharmacist.&nbsp;

- As of April 2021,&nbsp;fentanyl&nbsp;fatalities increased 49.4% in just 12 months, surpassing 64,000 deaths&nbsp;

-&nbsp;Fentanyl&nbsp;fatally poisons 175 people every day&nbsp;

-&nbsp;Fentanyl&nbsp;is tied to 64% of total drug fatalities&nbsp;

- 4 out of every 10 pills with&nbsp;fentanyl&nbsp;contain a potentially lethal dose&nbsp;

MANHATTAN —The Riley County Police Department has&nbsp;responded to six&nbsp;fentanyl&nbsp;overdoses in just the past two weeks.&nbsp;&nbsp;While none of the six resulted in death, these overdoses came from fake, pressed prescription pills containing&nbsp;fentanyl&nbsp;mostly oxycodone and Xanax.&nbsp;Riley County Police&nbsp;emphasize&nbsp;that&nbsp;individuals&nbsp;who overdose&nbsp;are&nbsp;not&nbsp;suspects&nbsp;in&nbsp;their&nbsp;investigations. The goal is to identify, apprehend and prosecute the distributor and/distribution network.&nbsp;Fentanyl is now the number one cause of death for Americans age 18-45. Fentanyl overtook and doubled the number two cause - suicide, in just one year.&nbsp;Distribution of a controlled substance causing great bodily harm is a&nbsp;Level&nbsp;V&nbsp;felony. Distribution of a controlled substance causing death is a&nbsp;Level&nbsp;I&nbsp;felony.&nbsp;Please talk to your friends and family about&nbsp;fentanyl, it could save their life.&nbsp;If you have any information about the distribution of these counterfeit pills you can submit a tip anonymously through Crime Stoppers at (785) 539-7777 or contact RCPD at (785) 537-2112 and ask to speak with the Special Investigations Unit (SIU).&nbsp;Below you can see visual examples of the differences between legitimate and counterfeit Oxycodone, Xanax and Adderall, courtesy of the DEA.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640911068998.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure><figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640911116296.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure><figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640911151535.jpeg" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure> Criminal drug networks mass-produce these fake pills and falsely market them as legit prescription pills. The images are examples and don't represent the many variations of counterfeit pills. The only safe medications are ones prescribed by a trusted medical professional and dispensed by a licensed pharmacist.&nbsp;- As of April 2021,&nbsp;fentanyl&nbsp;fatalities increased 49.4% in just 12 months, surpassing 64,000 deaths&nbsp;-&nbsp;Fentanyl&nbsp;fatally poisons 175 people every day&nbsp;-&nbsp;Fentanyl&nbsp;is tied to 64% of total drug fatalities&nbsp;- 4 out of every 10 pills with&nbsp;fentanyl&nbsp;contain a potentially lethal dose&nbsp;

Police: Fake fentanyl flooding the streets of Manhattan

SEATTLE (AP) — The omicron-fueled surge that is sending COVID-19 cases rocketing in the U.S. is putting children in the hospital in record numbers, and experts lament that most of the youngsters are not vaccinated.

“It’s just so heartbreaking,” said Dr. Paul Offit, an infectious-disease expert at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “It was hard enough last year, but now you know that you have a way to prevent all this.”

During the week of Dec. 22-28, an average of 378 children 17 and under were admitted per day to hospitals with the coronavirus, a 66% increase from the week before, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Thursday.

The previous high over the course of the pandemic was in early September, when child hospitalizations averaged 342 per day, the CDC said.

On a more hopeful note, children continue to represent a small percentage of those being hospitalized with COVID-19: An average of nearly 10,200 people of all ages were admitted per day during the same week in December. And many doctors say the youngsters seem less sick than those who came in during the delta surge over the summer.

Two months after vaccinations were approved for 5- to 11-year-olds, about 14% are fully protected, CDC data shows. The rate is higher for 12- to 17-year-olds, at about 53%.

A study released Thursday by the CDC confirmed that serious side effects from the Pfizer vaccine in children ages 5 to 11 are rare. The findings were based on approximately 8 million doses dispensed to youngsters in that age group.

Dr. Albert Ko, professor of epidemiology and infectious diseases at the Yale School of Public Health, noted that the low vaccination rate is, in part, a matter of timing: Younger children were not approved for the vaccine until November, and many are only now coming up on their second dose.

Offit said none of the vaccine-eligible children receiving care at his hospital about a week ago had been vaccinated, even though two-thirds had underlying conditions that put them at risk — either chronic lung disease or, more commonly, obesity. Only one was under the vaccination age of 5.

“They’re struggling to breathe, coughing, coughing, coughing,” Offit said. “A handful were sent to the ICU to be sedated. We put the attachment down their throat that’s attached to a ventilator, and the parents are crying.”

None of the parents or siblings was vaccinated either, he said.

The next four to six weeks are going to be rough, he said: “This is a virus that thrives in the winter.”

Aria Shapiro, 6, spent her 12th day Thursday at Phoenix Children’s Hospital. She tested positive for COVID-19 after getting her first dose of the vaccine Dec. 17.

Aria, who is considered “medically fragile” because she has epilepsy, suffered prolonged seizures in the hospital, and a breathing tube had to be put down her throat at one point, though she has since improved.

“We lived our life in for two years to prevent her from getting COVID, finally went for the vax, and the one thing that we didn’t want to happen happened,” said her mother, Sarah Shapiro. “It wasn’t enough time for her body to build antibodies. She did end up getting COVID.”

Overall, new COVID-19 cases in Americans of all ages have skyrocketed to the highest levels on record: an average of 300,000 per day, or 2 1/2 times the figure just two weeks ago. The highly contagious omicron accounted for 59% of new cases last week, according to the CDC.

Still, there are early indications that the variant causes milder illness than previous versions, and that the combination of the vaccine and the booster seems to protect people from its worst effects.

In California, 80 COVID-19-infected children were admitted to the hospital during the week of Dec. 20-26, compared with 50 in the last week of November, health officials said.

Seattle Children’s also reported a bump in the number of children admitted over the past week. And while they are less seriously ill than those hospitalized over the summer, Dr. John McGuire cautioned that it is early in the omicron wave, and the full effects will become apparent over the next several weeks.

New York health authorities have also sounded the alarm.

The number of children admitted to the hospital per week in New York City with COVID-19 went from 22 to 109 between Dec. 5 and Dec. 24. Across all of New York state, it went from 70 to 184. Overall, almost 5,000 people in New York were in the hospital with COVID-19.

“A fourfold increase makes everybody jump with concern, but it’s a small percentage,” Ko said of the New York City figures. “Children have a low risk of being hospitalized, but those who do are unvaccinated.”

Dr. Al Sacchetti, chief of emergency services at Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center in Camden, New Jersey, likewise said vaccinated children are handling the omicron outbreak extremely well.

“It makes a big difference in how these kids tolerate the disease, particularly if the child’s got some medical issues,” he said.

COVID-19 deaths have proved rare among children over the course of the pandemic. As of last week, 721 in the U.S. had died of the disease, according to data reported to the American Academy of Pediatrics. The overall U.S. death toll is more than 800,000.

Almost 199,000 child COVID-19 cases were reported during the week of Dec. 16-23, the pediatrics group said. That was about 20% of the more than 950,000 total cases recorded that week.

While many of these children will recover at home, they may have contact with others who are at much greater risk, said Dr. Jason Terk, a pediatrician in North Texas. He cared for a 10-year-old boy with COVID-19 who managed the disease well, but his father got sick and died, he said.

“The death of a parent is devastating, but the toxic stress for a young person in this situation is difficult to measure,” he said. ___

SEATTLE (AP) — The omicron-fueled surge that is sending COVID-19 cases rocketing in the U.S. is putting children in the hospital in record numbers, and experts lament that most of the youngsters are not vaccinated.“It’s just so heartbreaking,” said Dr. Paul Offit, an infectious-disease expert at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. “It was hard enough last year, but now you know that you have a way to prevent all this.”During the week of Dec. 22-28, an average of 378 children 17 and under were admitted per day to hospitals with the coronavirus, a 66% increase from the week before, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Thursday.The previous high over the course of the pandemic was in early September, when child hospitalizations averaged 342 per day, the CDC said.On a more hopeful note, children continue to represent a small percentage of those being hospitalized with COVID-19: An average of nearly 10,200 people of all ages were admitted per day during the same week in December. And many doctors say the youngsters seem less sick than those who came in during the delta surge over the summer.Two months after vaccinations were approved for 5- to 11-year-olds, about 14% are fully protected, CDC data shows. The rate is higher for 12- to 17-year-olds, at about 53%.A study released Thursday by the CDC confirmed that serious side effects from the Pfizer vaccine in children ages 5 to 11 are rare. The findings were based on approximately 8 million doses dispensed to youngsters in that age group.Dr. Albert Ko, professor of epidemiology and infectious diseases at the Yale School of Public Health, noted that the low vaccination rate is, in part, a matter of timing: Younger children were not approved for the vaccine until November, and many are only now coming up on their second dose.Offit said none of the vaccine-eligible children receiving care at his hospital about a week ago had been vaccinated, even though two-thirds had underlying conditions that put them at risk — either chronic lung disease or, more commonly, obesity. Only one was under the vaccination age of 5.The scenes are heart-rending.“They’re struggling to breathe, coughing, coughing, coughing,” Offit said. “A handful were sent to the ICU to be sedated. We put the attachment down their throat that’s attached to a ventilator, and the parents are crying.”None of the parents or siblings was vaccinated either, he said.The next four to six weeks are going to be rough, he said: “This is a virus that thrives in the winter.”Aria Shapiro, 6, spent her 12th day Thursday at Phoenix Children’s Hospital. She tested positive for COVID-19 after getting her first dose of the vaccine Dec. 17.Aria, who is considered “medically fragile” because she has epilepsy, suffered prolonged seizures in the hospital, and a breathing tube had to be put down her throat at one point, though she has since improved.“We lived our life in for two years to prevent her from getting COVID, finally went for the vax, and the one thing that we didn’t want to happen happened,” said her mother, Sarah Shapiro. “It wasn’t enough time for her body to build antibodies. She did end up getting COVID.”Overall, new COVID-19 cases in Americans of all ages have skyrocketed to the highest levels on record: an average of 300,000 per day, or 2 1/2 times the figure just two weeks ago. The highly contagious omicron accounted for 59% of new cases last week, according to the CDC.Still, there are early indications that the variant causes milder illness than previous versions, and that the combination of the vaccine and the booster seems to protect people from its worst effects.In California, 80 COVID-19-infected children were admitted to the hospital during the week of Dec. 20-26, compared with 50 in the last week of November, health officials said.Seattle Children’s also reported a bump in the number of children admitted over the past week. And while they are less seriously ill than those hospitalized over the summer, Dr. John McGuire cautioned that it is early in the omicron wave, and the full effects will become apparent over the next several weeks.New York health authorities have also sounded the alarm.The number of children admitted to the hospital per week in New York City with COVID-19 went from 22 to 109 between Dec. 5 and Dec. 24. Across all of New York state, it went from 70 to 184. Overall, almost 5,000 people in New York were in the hospital with COVID-19.“A fourfold increase makes everybody jump with concern, but it’s a small percentage,” Ko said of the New York City figures. “Children have a low risk of being hospitalized, but those who do are unvaccinated.”Dr. Al Sacchetti, chief of emergency services at Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center in Camden, New Jersey, likewise said vaccinated children are handling the omicron outbreak extremely well.“It makes a big difference in how these kids tolerate the disease, particularly if the child’s got some medical issues,” he said.COVID-19 deaths have proved rare among children over the course of the pandemic. As of last week, 721 in the U.S. had died of the disease, according to data reported to the American Academy of Pediatrics. The overall U.S. death toll is more than 800,000.Almost 199,000 child COVID-19 cases were reported during the week of Dec. 16-23, the pediatrics group said. That was about 20% of the more than 950,000 total cases recorded that week.While many of these children will recover at home, they may have contact with others who are at much greater risk, said Dr. Jason Terk, a pediatrician in North Texas. He cared for a 10-year-old boy with COVID-19 who managed the disease well, but his father got sick and died, he said.“The death of a parent is devastating, but the toxic stress for a young person in this situation is difficult to measure,” he said. ___

US children hospitalized with COVID in record numbers

DENVER (AP) — An estimated 580 homes, a hotel and a shopping center have burned and tens of thousands of people were evacuated in wind-fueled wildfires outside Denver, officials said Thursday evening.

At least one first responder and six others were injured, though Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle acknowledged there could be more injuries and deaths could be possible due to the intensity of fires that quickly swept across the region as winds gusted up to 105 mph.

The first fire erupted just before 10:30 a.m. and was “attacked pretty quickly and laid down later in the day and is currently being monitored” with no structures lost, Pelle said.

A second wildfire, reported just after 11 a.m., “ballooned and spread rapidly east,” Pelle said. The blaze spans 2.5 square miles (6.5 square kilometers) and has engulfed parts of the area in smoky, orangish skies and sent residents scrambling to get to safety.

The activity of the fires, which are burning unusually late into the winter season, will depend on how the winds behave overnight and could determine when crews are able to go in and begin assessing the damage and searching for any victims.

“This is the kind of fire we can’t fight head on,” Pelle said. “We actually had deputy sheriffs and firefighters in areas that had to pull out because they just got overrun,” he added.

Evacuations have been ordered for the city of Louisville, home to about 21,000 people, and Superior, which has another 13,000 residents.

The neighboring towns are roughly 20 miles&nbsp; northwest of Denver in an area filled with middle and upper-middle class subdivisions surrounded by shopping centers, parks and schools. The area is in between Denver and Boulder, a foothills college town home to the University of Colorado.

Residents evacuated fairly calmly and orderly, but the winding streets in the suburban subdivisions quickly became clogged as people tried to get out. It sometimes took cars as long as 45 minutes to advance about a half mile (less than a kilometer).

Small fires cropped up here and there in surprising places — on the grass in a median or in a dumpster in the middle of a parking lot — as wind gusts caused the fire to jump and spread. Shifting winds caused the skies to turn from clear to smoky and then back again as emergency sirens blared nearby.

Some of the several blazes in the area Thursday were sparked by downed power lines.

Six people who were injured in the fires were being treated at UCHealth Broomfield Hospital, spokesperson Kelli Christensen said. A nearby portion of U.S. Highway 36 also was shut down.

Colorado’s Front Range, where most of the state’s population lives, had an extremely dry and mild fall, and winter so far has continued to be mostly dry.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/science-lifestyle-business-denver-weather-d967eafc0de74000c758fbbac9f5f52d">Denver set a record for most consecutive days without snow</a>&nbsp;before it got a small storm on Dec. 10. It hasn’t snowed since, though snow was expected in the region Friday.

One video captured by a bystander outside a Superior Costco store showed an apocalyptic scene with winds whipping through barren trees in the parking lot surrounded by gray skies, a hazy sun and small fires scattered across the ground.

Leah Angstman and her husband saw similar dark skies while returning to their Louisville home from Denver International Airport after being away for the holidays. As they were sitting on the bus going toward Boulder, Angstman recalled instantly leaving clear blue skies and entering clouds of brown and yellow smoke.

“The wind rocked the bus so hard that I thought the bus would tip,” she wrote in a message to The Associated Press.

The visibility was so poor that the bus had to pull over and they waited a half-hour until a regional transit authority van escorted them to a turnaround on the highway. There she saw four separate fires burning in bushes across the freeway, she said.

“The sky was dark, dark brown, and the dirt was blowing in swirls across the sidewalk like snakes,” she said.

Angstman later ended up evacuating, getting in a car with her husband and driving northeast without knowing where they would end up.

Vignesh Kasinath, an assistant professor of biochemistry at the University of Colorado in Boulder, evacuated from a neighborhood in Superior with his wife and her parents. Kasinath said the family was overwhelmed because of the sudden evacuation warning and anxious from the chaos while trying to leave.

“It’s only because I am active on Twitter I came to know about this,” said Kasinath, who said he did not receive an official evacuation notice from authorities.

The fires prompted Gov. Jared Polis to declare a state of a emergency, allowing the state to access disaster emergency funds.

The evacuations come as climate change is making&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/climate-climate-change-science-environment-and-nature-935be069af34aad472074d42097af85e">weather more extreme</a>&nbsp;and wildfires more frequent and destructive, scientists say. A&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ut-state-wire-az-state-wire-id-state-wire-or-state-wire-nv-state-wire-d1f130f8826ef57c74db611e959937ac">historic drought</a>&nbsp;and heat waves have made wildfires harder to fight in the U.S. West.

Ninety percent of Boulder County is in severe or extreme drought, and hasn’t seen substantial rainfall since mid-summer.

“With any snow on the ground, this absolutely would not have happened in the way that it did,” said snow hydrologist Keith Musselman, who was at home when the fire broke out not far away.

Musselman said this severe fire risk can be expected in September and October following a dry summer, but the lack of any precipitation – snow or rain – this late in the season is highly unusual.

The National Weather Service predicts up to a foot of snow could fall tomorrow in Boulder, and that moisture would bring substantial relief, Musselman said.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640951000026.png" alt="Evacuations were ordered for the city of Louisville, home to about 21,000 people, and Superior, which has another 13,000 residents.-photo courtesy KKTV" />
 <figcaption>Evacuations were ordered for the city of Louisville, home to about 21,000 people, and Superior, which has another 13,000 residents.-photo courtesy KKTV</figcaption>
 </figure>DENVER (AP) — An estimated 580 homes, a hotel and a shopping center have burned and tens of thousands of people were evacuated in wind-fueled wildfires outside Denver, officials said Thursday evening.At least one first responder and six others were injured, though Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle acknowledged there could be more injuries and deaths could be possible due to the intensity of fires that quickly swept across the region as winds gusted up to 105 mph.The first fire erupted just before 10:30 a.m. and was “attacked pretty quickly and laid down later in the day and is currently being monitored” with no structures lost, Pelle said.A second wildfire, reported just after 11 a.m., “ballooned and spread rapidly east,” Pelle said. The blaze spans 2.5 square miles (6.5 square kilometers) and has engulfed parts of the area in smoky, orangish skies and sent residents scrambling to get to safety.The activity of the fires, which are burning unusually late into the winter season, will depend on how the winds behave overnight and could determine when crews are able to go in and begin assessing the damage and searching for any victims.“This is the kind of fire we can’t fight head on,” Pelle said. “We actually had deputy sheriffs and firefighters in areas that had to pull out because they just got overrun,” he added.Evacuations have been ordered for the city of Louisville, home to about 21,000 people, and Superior, which has another 13,000 residents.The neighboring towns are roughly 20 miles&nbsp; northwest of Denver in an area filled with middle and upper-middle class subdivisions surrounded by shopping centers, parks and schools. The area is in between Denver and Boulder, a foothills college town home to the University of Colorado.Residents evacuated fairly calmly and orderly, but the winding streets in the suburban subdivisions quickly became clogged as people tried to get out. It sometimes took cars as long as 45 minutes to advance about a half mile (less than a kilometer).Small fires cropped up here and there in surprising places — on the grass in a median or in a dumpster in the middle of a parking lot — as wind gusts caused the fire to jump and spread. Shifting winds caused the skies to turn from clear to smoky and then back again as emergency sirens blared nearby.Some of the several blazes in the area Thursday were sparked by downed power lines.Six people who were injured in the fires were being treated at UCHealth Broomfield Hospital, spokesperson Kelli Christensen said. A nearby portion of U.S. Highway 36 also was shut down.Colorado’s Front Range, where most of the state’s population lives, had an extremely dry and mild fall, and winter so far has continued to be mostly dry.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/science-lifestyle-business-denver-weather-d967eafc0de74000c758fbbac9f5f52d">Denver set a record for most consecutive days without snow</a>&nbsp;before it got a small storm on Dec. 10. It hasn’t snowed since, though snow was expected in the region Friday.One video captured by a bystander outside a Superior Costco store showed an apocalyptic scene with winds whipping through barren trees in the parking lot surrounded by gray skies, a hazy sun and small fires scattered across the ground.Leah Angstman and her husband saw similar dark skies while returning to their Louisville home from Denver International Airport after being away for the holidays. As they were sitting on the bus going toward Boulder, Angstman recalled instantly leaving clear blue skies and entering clouds of brown and yellow smoke.“The wind rocked the bus so hard that I thought the bus would tip,” she wrote in a message to The Associated Press.The visibility was so poor that the bus had to pull over and they waited a half-hour until a regional transit authority van escorted them to a turnaround on the highway. There she saw four separate fires burning in bushes across the freeway, she said.“The sky was dark, dark brown, and the dirt was blowing in swirls across the sidewalk like snakes,” she said.Angstman later ended up evacuating, getting in a car with her husband and driving northeast without knowing where they would end up.Vignesh Kasinath, an assistant professor of biochemistry at the University of Colorado in Boulder, evacuated from a neighborhood in Superior with his wife and her parents. Kasinath said the family was overwhelmed because of the sudden evacuation warning and anxious from the chaos while trying to leave.“It’s only because I am active on Twitter I came to know about this,” said Kasinath, who said he did not receive an official evacuation notice from authorities.The fires prompted Gov. Jared Polis to declare a state of a emergency, allowing the state to access disaster emergency funds.The evacuations come as climate change is making&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/climate-climate-change-science-environment-and-nature-935be069af34aad472074d42097af85e">weather more extreme</a>&nbsp;and wildfires more frequent and destructive, scientists say. A&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/ut-state-wire-az-state-wire-id-state-wire-or-state-wire-nv-state-wire-d1f130f8826ef57c74db611e959937ac">historic drought</a>&nbsp;and heat waves have made wildfires harder to fight in the U.S. West.Ninety percent of Boulder County is in severe or extreme drought, and hasn’t seen substantial rainfall since mid-summer.“With any snow on the ground, this absolutely would not have happened in the way that it did,” said snow hydrologist Keith Musselman, who was at home when the fire broke out not far away.Musselman said this severe fire risk can be expected in September and October following a dry summer, but the lack of any precipitation – snow or rain – this late in the season is highly unusual.The National Weather Service predicts up to a foot of snow could fall tomorrow in Boulder, and that moisture would bring substantial relief, Musselman said.____

Wildfires near Denver burn hundreds of homes, force evacuations

OSAGE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a southwest Kansas man on drug charges after a traffic stop in northeast Kansas.

On December 24, a sheriff’s deputy conducted a traffic stop near the K-31 South exit on Interstate 35 for a traffic violation, according to Sheriff Chris Wells.

During the stop, a K9 was deployed, and illegal narcotics were located.

The driver of the vehicle, Marcos A. Arteaga-Juarez, 32, of Garden City, was taken into custody and transported to the Osage County Jail Facility on suspicion of possession of cocaine, possession of marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2021/12/1640863492132.png" alt="Arteaga-Juarez-photo Osage Co." />
 <figcaption>Arteaga-Juarez-photo Osage Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>OSAGE COUNTY—Law enforcement authorities are investigating a southwest Kansas man on drug charges after a traffic stop in northeast Kansas.On December 24, a sheriff’s deputy conducted a traffic stop near the K-31 South exit on Interstate 35 for a traffic violation, according to Sheriff Chris Wells.During the stop, a K9 was deployed, and illegal narcotics were located.The driver of the vehicle, Marcos A. Arteaga-Juarez, 32, of Garden City, was taken into custody and transported to the Osage County Jail Facility on suspicion of possession of cocaine, possession of marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia.

SW Kansas man caught with cocaine in NE Kansas

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel has approved a fourth vaccine dose for people most vulnerable to COVID-19, becoming the first country to do so as it braces for a wave of infections fueled by the omicron variant.

Nachman Ash, the director general of the Health Ministry, announced the decision at a press conference late on Thursday.

He says the decision is based on early research, and that officials will consider expanding the administration of a fourth dose to more of the public as they assess the situation.

Israel was among the first countries to roll out Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine a year ago and began freely offering boosters last summer. But it still saw a wave of infections blamed on the delta variant, and officials have warned of another driven by the fast-spreading omicron.

Earlier Thursday, Israel received its first shipment of pills that treat the worst effects of COVID-19.

It’s among of the first countries to receive Pfizer’s Paxlovid, a pill that can be taken at home to ward off the most severe symptoms of the coronavirus. All the previously authorized drugs require an IV or injection.

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said the shipment would help Israel to “successfully overcome the peak of the approaching omicron wave.”

Israeli media reported that the first shipment consists of 20,000 doses, with more expected as Pfizer ramps up production.

Israel currently has more than 20,000 active patients, including 94 who are seriously ill. At least 8,243 people have died from COVID-19 in Israel since the start of the pandemic.

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel has approved a fourth vaccine dose for people most vulnerable to COVID-19, becoming the first country to do so as it braces for a wave of infections fueled by the omicron variant.Nachman Ash, the director general of the Health Ministry, announced the decision at a press conference late on Thursday.He says the decision is based on early research, and that officials will consider expanding the administration of a fourth dose to more of the public as they assess the situation.Israel was among the first countries to roll out Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine a year ago and began freely offering boosters last summer. But it still saw a wave of infections blamed on the delta variant, and officials have warned of another driven by the fast-spreading omicron.Earlier Thursday, Israel received its first shipment of pills that treat the worst effects of COVID-19.It’s among of the first countries to receive Pfizer’s Paxlovid, a pill that can be taken at home to ward off the most severe symptoms of the coronavirus. All the previously authorized drugs require an IV or injection.Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said the shipment would help Israel to “successfully overcome the peak of the approaching omicron wave.”Israeli media reported that the first shipment consists of 20,000 doses, with more expected as Pfizer ramps up production.Israel currently has more than 20,000 active patients, including 94 who are seriously ill. At least 8,243 people have died from COVID-19 in Israel since the start of the pandemic.