Europe adopts tougher virus restrictions as infections surge
LONDON—As the U.S. closed in on 200,000 corona virus deaths Monday, the crisis deteriorated across Europe, with Britain working to draw up new restrictions, Spain clamping down again in Madrid and the Czech Republic replacing its health minister with an epidemiologist because of a surge of infections.
The push to reimpose tough measures in Europe to beat back a scourge that had seemingly been brought under control in the spring contributed to a drop on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed nearly 510 points, or 1.8%, and the S&P 500 fell 1.2%.
In Britain, Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to announce a round of restrictions Tuesday to slow the spread of t he disease. British Chief Medical Officer Chris W hi tty warned t hat cases are doubling every seven days and could lead to a rise in deaths in the coming weeks.
The chief medical officers of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland raised the nation's COVID-19 alert Monday from three to four, the second-highest level. More t han 4,300 new infections were reported on Monday, a level not seen since early May.
“We have, in a very bad sense, literally turned a corner,” after weeks of rising infections, Whitty said. In France, where infections reached a
record high over the weekend with more than 13,000 new cases in 24 hours, health authorities opened new testing centers in the Paris region to reduce lines and delays. Italy added Paris and other parts of France to its COVID-19 blacklist, requiring travelers from those regions to show proof of a negative test or undergo testing on arrival.
And t he Norwegian capital of Oslo banned gatherings of more than 10 people in private homes after a spike in cases and strongly urged people to wear face masks when traveling on public transportation amid a strike by bus drivers that forced many commuters to take the tram.
“The situation in Oslo is serious. This development must be stopped, and we have to do it now,” Mayor Raymond Johansen said.
Police in the Spanish capital of Madrid and i ts surrounding towns began stopping people going in and out of working-class neighborhoods that have been partially locked down to combat
Europe's fastest coronavirus spread.
Authorities said that starting on Wednesday, an estimated 860,000 residents must be able to show that their trips out of their neighborhoods are justified for work, study or medical reasons or face fines. Parks are closed and shops and restaurants in the affected zones are limited to 50% occupancy.
The targeted locations have some of the highest transmission rates in Europe. The measure has been met with protests from people who think the restrictions are stigmatizing the poor.
The German city of Munich, with one of the country's highest infection rates, will allow only up to five people or members of two households to meet, and will restrict private indoor gatherings such as birthday parties, weddings or funerals to no more than 25 people.
The Czech Republic also faces the possibility of new restrictions after the government appointed epidemiologist Roman Prymula as health minister.