Swiss drafts army as virus cases spike

The Swiss government said Wednesday it will deploy troops in
cantons where under-pressure health services require support as coronavirus
cases spike.

The Federal Council, the country’s highest executive
authority, said it had “decided to support the public health sector by
mobilising up to 2,500 troops as backup.”

It said authorities would consider requests from individual
cantons as the virus’ second wave hits the country hard.

The army will notably assist hospitals in administering
basic care and testing as Switzerland looks to ramp up capacity with some
hospitals in worst-affected regions seeing intensive care facilities
approaching saturation point.

The government said troops also may be deployed to assist
with transport of infected people.

Authorities in the French-speaking Fribourg canton had
Friday called for military assistance saying they could no longer cope with the
skyrocketing number of cases.

Relative to neighbouring countries, Switzerland avoided the
worst of the first wave but has seen 10,000 fresh cases and 72 deaths since
Tuesday while the proportion of positive tests rose to one in four.

The country of 8.56 million has a death toll of some 2,500
to date for some 200,000 declared cases.

Virginie Masserey, head of vaccination strategies at the
Swiss Federal Office of Public Health, warned intensive care facilities could
reach saturation point as early as Sunday.

During the first wave, the army had helped deliver millions
of sanitary masks to shops.