- Italy, which one year ago imposed one of the first national lockdowns, is once again struggling to contain the rapid spread of infections.
- Shops, restaurants and schools will be closed across most of Italy, with PM Mario Draghi warning of a “new wave” of the coronavirus outbreak.
- For three days over Easter, 3-5 April, there will be a total shutdown.
Italy faces another lockdown as the government attempts to contain a recent surge of coronavirus cases, marred by the presence of new variants, reports CNN.
New coronavirus restrictions
Half of Italy’s 20 regions, which include the cities Rome, Milan and Venice, will be entering new coronavirus restrictions from Monday, March 15. The measures will be effective through April 6, according to a decree passed by Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi’s cabinet on Friday.
In regions demarcated as “red zones” people will be unable to leave their houses except for work or health reasons, with all non-essential shops closed. In “orange zones,” people will also be banned from leaving their town and their region — except for work or health reasons — and bars and restaurants will only be able to do delivery and take-away service.
Affected regions will be labelled red or orange, depending on the level of contagion. Regions that report weekly Covid-19 cases of more than 250 per 100,000 residents will also automatically go into lockdown, meaning that other regions could also be affected during this time period.
The health ministry said that the aim of the measures is to get the R rate — the number of people that one infected person will pass the virus onto — down to 1.
Easter lockdown
Over the Easter weekend, the entire country will be considered a “red zone,” and will be subject to a national lockdown from April 3 to 5.
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi said new coronavirus measures are “necessary” because “we are unfortunately facing a new wave of infections” one year after the start of the pandemic.”
The country’s R rate is now at 1.6 with coronavirus variants increasing the spread of the virus, according to the health ministry.
The variant B.1.1.7, which was first identified in the United Kingdom, is also now prevalent in the country, according to the health ministry, who also said that they are worried about the presence of small clusters of the Brazilian variant.
What are the new rules in Italy?
From Monday, schools, shops and restaurants will shut in more than half of Italy, including the two most populous regions containing Rome and Milan. Residents will be required to stay at home except for work, health or other essential reasons.
The extra restrictions would last until Easter, Mr Draghi’s office said, and over the Easter weekend the whole country would be turned into the high-risk “red zone.”
“I’m aware that today’s restrictions will have consequences on the education of your children, on the economy and on everyone’s mental health,” Mr Draghi said.
“But they’re necessary to avoid a worsening of the situation that would require even stricter measures.”
Cases have been rising across Italy for the past six weeks, exceeding 25,000 a day.
In a majority of the country’s regions “hospitals and above all intensive care units are already overloaded,” the GIMBE health think-tank warned this week, the AFP news agency reported.
The island of Sardinia is the only region where infection rates are low.
Italy has had nearly 3.2 million confirmed infections since the outbreak began last year.
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Source: CNN
