Two-thirds of London’s ultra-rectangular Jewish community were on Covid last year – nine times the national average and about 0.3 percent of those infected died, a study has shown.
Researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine found that the prevalence of previous diseases was 64 percent in the community of about 15,000 people.
This compares with rates of 11 per cent in London as a whole and just seven per cent across the UK, according to estimates from the Office for National Statistics.
Suspected diseases in the community peaked in early March, just before the first lock, when rates began to fall sharply, before rising again in the autumn when restrictions were lifted.
The researchers say the reasons for such high levels of disease are not clear, but housing and poverty are thought to be crowded as factors.
Ultra-Orthodox families have much larger sizes than the UK average – with five to six people per household compared to the UK average of 2.3 – and tend to live in areas with higher population densities.
Researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine found that the prevalence of past infections in London’s ultra-rectangular Jewish community was 64 percent
Jewish men and women suffer the highest death rates in Britain’s first wave of pandemic
Hasidic evidence in north London rejected social distance rules back in May when hundreds gathered to celebrate a holy festival in their religious calendar
General events and gatherings have been regularly attended at pre-release times, although there have been a number of notable breakdowns in recent weeks.
Israel Frey, an ultra-orthodox journalist who has been critical of the community’s response to the pandemic, told the Jerusalem Post that he does not see ‘even a gram’ of introspection or a change in direction in opinion. leadership on the crisis.
He said: ‘Ultra-Orthodoxy in 2021 is all about the energy of collective gatherings and celebrations: all together.
‘That’s what sustains ultra-orthodoxy – the whole foundation is universal collections.’
Last week also saw the death of two of the world’s oldest and most respected ultra-rectangular rabbits – Rabbi Meshulam David Soloveitchik, 99, and Rabbi Yitzhak Scheiner, 98 – both of whom have previously been confirmed by the virus.
Several other religious leaders have suffered with Covid in Israel and the U.S., with funerals attended by thousands despite restrictions on gatherings, the JP reports.
It comes after Mayor Hackney called for an Orthodox fight to stop major weddings after a series of incidents violating locking rules surfaced.
Police broke up a gathering of 150 people in Stamford Hill, north London, at Charedi Jewish Intensive School last Thursday.
Guests fled the wedding held at Yesodey Hatorah Girls’ School when police arrived around 9.15pm, where some had covered windows and closed gates to hide the festivities.
Former school principal Rabbi Avroham Pinter died of coronavirus last spring, according to Jewish News.
The publication also claims that at least 50 illegal Orthodox marriages have taken place during a lockout.
The LSHTM survey invited more than 1,750 people in the community to undergo a demographic and medical intelligence survey and provide a blood sample between November and early December 2020, which was then tested for antibodies.
Blood samples were collected from 1,242 people, with an overall disease rate of 64%, one of the highest recorded anywhere in the world.
During the study, 697 people (37.5%) reported an illness they thought was compatible with COVID-19.
There were clear peaks in disease reported according to the first and second waves of the virus in the UK.
A total of 16 (0.9%) reported being hospitalized for COVID-19 and a further three were reported to have died from COVID-19.
Dr Michael Marks, who co-directed the LSHTM study, said: ‘Our work has highlighted the high levels of disease in this interconnected population.
‘Working with the community we are planning further work to understand the potential implications. These decisions could support new interventions that could help reduce infection in the community. ‘
Officials were present at a sighting in north London in May before the celebrations took place, and were told there would be no more than 10 members of the same family, who lived at least at home. Police went back a few hours later and found the party in full swing, right
Covid has a major impact on ethnic and religious minorities throughout the pandemic, with poverty, reduced ability to work from home and larger family sizes being thought of as factors.
Researchers are adding that while attention in the UK is largely focused Figures from Afro-Caribbean and South Asia, data from Public Health England show that other small groups have had a significant impact.
Jewish men older than 65 were found to have a higher mortality rate than Christians, even after adjusting for socio-demographic factors.
Mr Marks said: ‘The levels we have seen are among the highest reported anywhere in the world to date.
‘As our study was completed in early December 2020, before the subsequent increase in cases, the overall burden of infection in this community now appears to be even higher.
‘While locking measures were still very effective in reducing the transmission, by 2020 three out of four secondary-aged children and adults were still infected.
We would like to thank the community. It was an honor to work directly with them, and to think that this community engagement approach could be a plan to further understand the impact of COVID-19 on other organizations in the UK. ‘
The Office of the Chief Rabbi was contacted for comment.