THE “WINTER SURGE” has the total number of deaths in American from the coronavirus to nearly 400,000 (Shutterstock)

The “winter surge” of coronavirus cases continues to rage across the United States. The Johns Hopkins University is reporting that COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. are close to 400,000, reaching 398,653 as of this writing. Total number of domestic cases is tallied at 24,045,025.

Deaths worldwide are over 2 million, with cases at 95.4 million.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo called on federal aviation authorities to stop air traffic from countries where new – in some cases, more easily transmitted – variants are spreading, according to the Associated Press.

A new policy requiring proof of a negative coronavirus test will soon go into effect for anyone flying into the U.S.

The mutation of the COVID-19 is coming from Brazil and Great Britain, where it is straining the public health systems.

Across the nation, the 14-day average computed by The New York Times is at an increase of 3 percent. However, some states, such as California, Texas, and New York are being hit harder. Deaths, on the other hand, are up 26 percent.

News: No violence seen for Jan. 20 inauguration events

Predictions about possible pre-Inauguration rallies and protests have not come to pass, reports USA Today. The presence of up to 25,000 troops – most of them armed – along with multiple law enforcement agencies appears to have cowed protestors, say officials.

The U.S. Capitol was briefly locked down Monday in response to a fire at a nearby homeless encampment, forcing interruption of a rehearsal of inauguration events.

THE CHANGE AT NOON: Joe Biden will be formally sworn as 46th President of the United States at 12 p.m. (9 a.m. Pacific time) on Wednesday, with ceremonies starting with the National Anthem and invocation around 11:30 a.m.

Kamala Harris will be sworn in before Biden.  Chief Justice John Roberts will administer the oath of office to Biden, and Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor will do the same for Harris.

Outgoing President Donald Trump will not be attending and is expected to leave Washington Wednesday morning.

Sports:  Who will win conference titles?

A consensus of predictions for next Sunday has the Green Bay Packers over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC title game and the Kansas City Chiefs over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC contest, according to The Sporting News.