London’s Chareidi Community Has 64% Infection Rate – 9 Times Higher Than British Average

LONDON (VINnews) — The chareidi community in London has a COVID-19 infection rate of 64%, which is nine times higher than the British average of 7%, according to a BBC report Wednesday. The number of infections is “among the highest reported anywhere in the world,” according to a study by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

At least three-quarters of the adults in London’s ultra-Orthodox Jewish community got COVID-19 last year — one of the highest known rates of infection in a community ever recorded, according to the study.

Blood samples taken showed that 75% of adults tested in London’s Orthodox community had antibodies — with almost the same percentage of school children aged over 11 showing antibodies to the virus.

The reason for the high numbers was unclear according to researchers, but the larger families (5-6 people on average as opposed to 2.3 national average), higher levels of density and crowding among the capital’s chareidi Jewish community and the penchant for communal activities could explain the higher rate of infection.

The research, which took place in December, used samples of around 15,000 members of the Jewish community in London. The BBC stated that with a new wave of infections sweeping the UK at present the rate may likely be “even higher” now.

It was previously reported that Jewish men are twice as likely to die of coronavirus than their Christian counterparts, even after adjusting for socio-economic factors.