SAO PAULO (AP) – On the eve of New Year’s Eve in Rio de Janeiro, thousands of revelers in bathing suits packed the iconic Ipanema beach to have a few drinks by the sea. It was one of many outdoor parties that have taken place along the vast coast of Brazil since the beginning of the summer heat, and as the death toll at COVID-19 increased.
“It was so crowded that you couldn’t get your feet on the beach,” said a maintenance worker in a luxury apartment building across the street. “And it wasn’t just at night; the beach was packed during the day as well. And nobody wears a mask! ”He added, insisting not to be named by name because he feared the building owner would punish him for speaking to a reporter.
The explosion of celebrations came just before a pandemic milestone: Brazil surpassed 200,000 deaths on Thursday, increasing 1,524 in the previous 24 hours to a total of 200,498 for the pandemic, according to data released by the Ministry of Health of Brazil. It is the second largest toll in the world, behind the United States, according to the Johns Hopkins University database.
Many Brazilians have been fighting quarantine for months, going to bars or small meetings with friends, but massive explosions have been rare since the pandemic began. The festivities began after the southern hemisphere summer began on December 21.
While many countries imposed new restrictions to limit the spread of the virus in mid-December, President Jair Bolsonaro’s government gave his blessing for the fun of vacationing in the sun. Tourism Minister Gilson Machado told Jovem Pan radio that meetings of up to 300 people are perfectly acceptable. The decision to impose restrictions is the prerogative of local governments; some who did have seen their rules ignored.
An important YouTuber organized a party near a river beach for hundreds of people in the state of Alagoas, in the northeast of the country. Days later, local media reported that 47 people, including guests without a mask and hired COVID-19 employees. At least two were admitted to intensive care units.
A five-day New Year’s party drew 150 people near the soccer star Neymar’s property outside Rio, although he denies any association with the VIP event.
Outside of São Paulo, Bolsonaro began 2021 by jumping off a boat and swimming towards a crowd of unmasked and applauding fans.
And police officers from the city of Bertioga, on the coast of São Paulo, used tear gas to disperse a party in the early hours of New Year’s Eve.
“Just before the parties, the situation was getting worse. But this week or next, it will get even worse, ”Domingos Alves, associate professor of social medicine at the University of São Paulo, told the Associated Press this week.
Alves, who leads a team of researchers following the COVID-19 data, warned that the cases confirmed daily in several states have already exceeded the numbers of the Brazilian peak in July.
Intensive care units in many cities are once again full of COVID-19 patients. The mayor of the Amazonas state capital, Manaus – which a local study speculated may have achieved herd immunity after its first brutal wave – declared a 180-day state of emergency on Tuesday and suspended all authorizations for events. State authorities banned all non-essential activities for 15 days in most parts of the city
The city of 2.2 million people has recorded 3,550 deaths since the start of the pandemic, and the number of COVID-19 burials has increased. Outside at least one cemetery, cars lined up full of people waiting to bury their loved ones.
Vanda Ortega, a volunteer nurse from the Manaus Community of Indigenous Nations, told the AP that the city took a direct approach to the virus, first during the local elections in November with large rallies and long lines of voters.
“So we had the holiday season, with a lot of secret parties,” said Ortega, who belongs to the Witoto ethnic group. “We live in an area where the rich have huts. They have parties every week. “
Many mayors on the coast of São Paulo ignored the holiday restrictions imposed by their governor. In at least 12 cities, mayors keep shops, hotels and beaches open to tourists.
Images of traffic jams and crowded beaches, with crowds largely unmasked, were so shocking that European Union Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni expressed his disbelief on Twitter, saying “I saw shameful images of Brazil”.
And Bolsonaro – who has consistently minimized the risks of the virus despite taking a case – has signaled with his New Year’s swim that he will continue to ignore the protective measures observed in most countries.
“I dove in a mask so as not to catch COVID from the goldfish,” he joked a few days later outside the presidential palace.
Even some Brazilians who consider themselves cautious are letting their guard down. Soccer supporter Ricardo Santos, 46, says he covers his face every time he leaves, carries hand sanitizer in his bag and observes social distance. But on Wednesday, he and a dozen other Palmeiras fans went to a bar in downtown São Paulo to watch his team’s game.
“I spent the new year with just two friends who live in the same building. I take precautions. But sometimes you have to accept a small risk to preserve your mental health too, ”said Santos.
Back on Rio’s Ipanema beach, João Batista Baria, 57, said he blamed the authorities for not protecting its poorest residents.
“Everyone is talking about these beach parties, but crowding also takes place on the bus, on the subway,” said Baria while cleaning the folding chairs that tourists and residents rent to enjoy the summer sun. “People come to the beach because they want to. I need to take the bus to get to work. ”