Russia’s national coronavirus task force reported 1,106 deaths in 24 hours, the most since the start of the pandemic.
During that time, most state organizations and private businesses are to suspend operations, and most stores will close along with kindergartens, schools, gyms and most entertainment venues.
Access to museums, theaters, concert halls and other venues will be limited to people holding digital codes on their smartphones to prove they have been vaccinated or recovered from COVID-19, a practice that will remain in place after Nov.
However, the sales of airline tickets and hotel bookings at Russia’s Black Sea resorts surged on the news of the extended holiday, forcing authorities in southern Russia to shut down entertainment venues and limit access to restaurants and bars to customers with the digital health codes.
Russia was the first country in the world to authorize a coronavirus vaccine, launching Sputnik V in August 2020.
Confirmed cases and deaths have increased over the past week, and the Ukrainian Health Ministry on Tuesday reported a record 734 deaths in 24 hours.
Bulgaria, the European Union’s least-vaccinated nation with about 25% of the adult population fully inoculated, reported 5,863 new confirmed cases and 243 deaths Tuesday, both national daily records.
In the Baltics, which border Russia, authorities in Estonia are considering new coronavirus restrictions on top of the ones that took effect a day ago.