Spain, France look to Italy.
Both countries order lockdowns as more nations close borders
Barcelona, Spain — Spain locked down its 46 million citizens Saturday and France ordered the closing of just about everything the rest of the world loves about it — the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the cafes, restaurants and cinema — as governments took increasingly desperate measures to put more space between people and contain the coronavirus.
More borders snapped shut around the globe: President Donald Trump announced that the U.S., which days ago barred travelers from most of Europe, will extend the ban to Britain and Ireland, where cases are on the rise.
Meanwhile, China, where the scourge first appeared late last year, continued to relax its drastic restrictions, illustrating the way the center of gravity in the crisis has shifted westward toward Europe. The virus has infected more than 150,000 people worldwide and killed more than 5,700.
In a nationally televised address, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez detailed the battery of exceptional measures put in place as part of a two-week state of emergency to fight the sharp rise in infections.
In a lockdown similar to the one already imposed in Italy, people will be allowed to leave their homes only to buy food and medicine, commute to work, go to hospitals and banks, or take trips related to the care of the young and the elderly. All schools and universities were closed, along with restaurants, bars, hotels and other non-essential retail businesses.
“From now we enter into a new phase,” Sánchez said after a Cabinet meeting that lasted more than seven hours. “We won’t hesitate in doing what we must to beat the virus. We are putting health first.”
Spanish authorities said the number of infections climbed past 5,700, half of them in the capital, Madrid. That represents a national increase of more than 1,500 in 24 hours. The country had 136 deaths, up from 120. Spain has the fifth-highest number of cases, behind China, Italy, Iran and South Korea.
Shoppers packed supermarkets in Spain in the morning despite pleas for calm from authorities. But overall, the normally bustling streets of the country’s two biggest cities were noticeably quieter as the message sank in that social distancing is the only way to stop the pandemic.
“We had to close and remain shut for 15 days,” restaurant owner Rachel Paparardo said in Barcelona, which was already under regional restrictions. “But this is nothing. It is just so more people don’t get infected and we can recover from this.”
Some flights bound for Spain turned around as word spread of the lockdown.
The U.S. and other Western countries moved to prevent their health systems from collapsing under the caseload.
The U.S. reported 54 deaths — including the first in New York — and more than 2,200 cases. In hard-hit Washington state, where 37 have died and 560 have been infected, officials said the disease is straining the supply of protective gear available to medical providers despite shipments from the federal government.
Paris followed other cities in shuttering major tourist attractions, and France announced the closing of all restaurants, cafes, theaters and nonessential shops starting today. France has recorded at least 3,600 infections. It has banned all gatherings of more than 100 people, ordered all schools closed and asked companies to allow workers to stay home.
France pressed ahead with plans for nationwide municipal elections today but ordered special measures to keep people at a safe distance and to sanitize surfaces. Voters were advised to bring a pen to sign the voting register.
In Italy, the worst-hit European country, the number of deaths climbed past 1,400 and infections surged roughly 20 percent overnight to more than 21,000 because of what authorities characterized as irresponsible behavior by people still socializing despite the nationwide lockdown.
Premier Giuseppe Conte has said production — particularly of food and health supplies — must not stop. On Saturday, union and industrial leaders reached an agreement to keep factories running.