Italy in lockdown

Italy in lockdown

Rome [ENA] Today the news of Italy in lockdown immediately became the breaking news of all the information sites in the world, from the New York Times to the Xinhua. Italian Premier Prof.Giuseppe Conte on Monday announced drastic restrictions aimed at combatting the spread of the coronavirus. The government has extended measures already effective in the 'red zones' of northern Italy worst-hit by the deadly virus

to the whole nation of over 60 million people. This is a historic choice : in modern times, no country has suspended the freedom of movement of its citizens across national territory. Government experts know that the emergency needs competence. They are comforted by the fact that restrictive measures have started to work in the old “red areas”. The race against the virus has started, and one has to fight by remaining at home. All gatherings in public places have been banned, bars and restaurants must close by 6pm and sporting events are not allowed, according to the measures running until April 3. There were some reports of panic buying at 24-hour supermarkets overnight.

The government had already closed Italy's schools, universities, theatres, cinemas and museums to combat COVID-19. Civil Protection Chief and Coronavirus Emergency Commissioner Angelo Borrelli said Monday that 463 people have died in Italy after contracting the virus, up 97 on Sunday. He said 7,985 are ill with the coronavirus in Italy, up 1,598 on Sunday. Borrelli said 724 people have recovered, 102 more than Sunday. The total number of cases in Italy adds up to 9,172 when those who have recovered and those who have died are calculated. “There is no time left, "declared Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte. Italy closes due to viruses: to stop the infection, the government has decided to extend the rules already active in Northern Italy

to the whole country. The whole country becomes a "protected area". Financial markets react fearfully to the prospect of a global pandemic. Governments are lagging behind, both on the health and economic front. There is no coordination between nations just when the whole world is threatened by a common emergency. "The Italian government makes it clear that it will use all the tools at its disposal to invest immediately in the country”, said the deputy minister of economics, Antonio Misiani.

Predicting “peak virus” is often destined to fail. But it is not futile. The arrival of the “peak virus” in Italy has been calculated, but the error margins are high because the virus is new and the trend really depends on how much Italians will comply with the measures decided by the government. According to ANSA, Italian Press Agency “Over two million face masks and some 10,000 pulmonary ventilators are set to reach Italy from China under contracts about to be signed, after a phone call between Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio and Chinese counterpart Wang Yi” today 10th of March.