Italy Goes Full "Wuhan", Orders Most Restrictive Lockdown Yet

[wvwvw]

Italy Goes Full "Wuhan", Orders Most Restrictive Lockdown Yet, As Global Case Total Passes 300k: Live Updates
Sat, 03/21/2020 - 18:55

Summary:

• Massive surge in number of deaths and cases in UK, Germany, Spain, Italy, and France
• New York, New Jersey deaths, cases accelerate
• Italy goes under full lockdown
• NY Gov Cuomo: "months, not weeks" to control virus
• Ukraine declares total quarantine
• Belgium sees 25% jump in cases
• Saudi Arabia reports 10% spike
• German gov't ends years of fiscal restraint with 365 billion euro aid package
• NYC airspace closed after positive Air Traffic Controller test
• NJ declares full state lockdown; "will take action" for people not following precautions
• FDA authorizes first 45-minute COVID-19 test
• US Fiscal Aid package around $2 trillion (10% of GDP), Kudlow
• Officials increasingly calling for the cancellation of the Tokyo Olympics
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Update (1835ET): Even after threatening Italians in some areas with serious criminal penalties for violating their stringent quarantine orders, it seems Italy's coronavirus containment efforts have failed.



After reporting another shocking jump in deaths, the Italian government has gone full "Wuhan", ordering a shutdown of industrial production.

In a speech delivered just before midnight on Saturday in Rome, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced that he is ordering ALL non-essential businesses to be closed, and for Italians to stay home.

These measures are slightly more restrictive than the current measures, which allow Italians more freedom to move about their towns and communities. They will also likely result in a much larger economic hit, as Italy's industrial stalwarts are forced to pause operation.

And just like that, an entire country - 60 million Italians - is now under 'shelter in place.'

Elsewhere, as Middle Eastern countries escalate their crackdowns, Kuwait announced that it would start imposing a curfew between 5pm and 4am due to what the government called “non-compliance with Ministry of Health’s instructions to stay indoors." Meanwhile, the UAE has closed beaches and parks for two weeks.

As the number of confirmed cases in Europe and North America soar, the total global case total has surpassed 300k on Saturday.

Finally, an interesting snippet from the FT: Researchers on multiple continents say an usual symptom has emerged in the majority of Covid-19 patients: a loss of the sense of smell.

Update (1510ET): Across Europe on Saturday, deaths accorded to COVID-19 soared, with Italy reporting a record 793 deaths on Friday, and Spain reporting another 300 cases, bringing their totals to 4,825 and 1,326.

The UK also reported another string of deaths, as millions await a lockdown order on London, while hospitals and intensive care units in Italy and Spain are struggling to cope, despite some Madrid hotels being temporarily converted and of the Fair of Madrid, the capital’s main exhibition space.

As we've mentioned before, now is a good time for coffinmakers and funeral homes in Italy.



But these weren't the only states seeing a spike. The total number of cases of coronavirus in Belgium rose by over 500 in 24 hours, a 25% jump bringing its total number to 2,815. The government also reported deaths had risen to 67, an increase of 30 over the same time period. According to the FT, a spokesman for the Belgian government’s crisis center advised people to establish a clear daily routine to avoid mental health issues.

In Ukraine, Arsen Avakov, the country's interior affairs minister, called for a nationwide "total full quarantine," warning that strict lockdowns and possibly martial law would soon be declared to stop the spread of the virus.

As we mentioned earlier, Germany is set to abandon six years of fiscal restraint with a blow-out budget designed to save its economy from the brutal effects of the coronavirus pandemic of €356 billion .

Even Saudi Arabia saw a 10% spike in cases announced on Saturday, with 48 new cases confirmed, bringing the total number in KSA to 392.

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Update (1415ET): Just as Gov. Cuomo hinted earlier this week, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy has signed an executive order mandating that all non-essential workers living in the state stay home.

Meanwhile, a group of European countries have reported new figures, including Spain, which announced that more than 5,000 new cases and ~300 new deaths were confirmed over the past day, increasing the total number of cases in the country by 25% to 24,926, according to the Spanish Ministry of Health.

The death toll in the country is at 1,326.

.....,,

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitic...r-live-updates

[MinervaItalica]

Full lockdown is good but Italy just need to use the same strict methods of China and South Korea. Unfortunately (or perhaps not, i don't know) we are a democracy.

Technology is the keyword. Convert fashion industry to produce medical tools such as masks, use drones to check large areas and severe sanctions for those who don't respect rules. Italy is doing this in part but imo not enough. However i can clearly affirm that i'm happy and somewhat surprised to see that the majority of Italians are respecting the lockdown and these community-based measures.

[wvwvw]

Like Birds in a Cage
Thomas DiLorenzo

ABC news just showed some people in Pittsburgh who organized a neighborhood sing-a-long of “It’s a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood,” the Mr. Rogers song. They were all on their own porches, far away from any neighbor. Just like so many singing birds in cages. And of course none of them had to think that it was a “beautiful” day in the neighborhood.