Lockdowns spread, vaccines run short
Fresh Covid-19 curbs imposed on millions of people as infections surge
Fresh lockdowns and curfews were imposed on tens of millions of people from France to Argentina yesterday, as Covid-19 infections surged again and vaccine roll-outs were hampered by shortages and scares over side effects.
Stay-at-home orders were set to come into force for the eight million inhabitants of Bogota, as the Colombian capital battled a third wave of infections, adding to curfews already covering seven million across four other major cities.
Elsewhere in South America, Argentina entered a nighttime curfew Friday running from midnight to 6am every day until April 30. It will be in force in the country’s highest-risk areas, mainly urban centres, where bars and restaurants will close at 11 pm.
Rising infections
Both Argentina and Colombia have recorded about 2.5 million coronavirus cases, numbers surpassed only by Brazil in the region. All of France is subject to restrictions of some form, while the German government’s attempts to curb movement have been stymied by several states refusing to go along with the proposals.
Now Berlin is changing the rules to centralise power, adjustments likely to usher in night-time curfews and school closures in hard-hit areas.
But some countries were in the process of opening up. Italy was set to end lockdowns from next week for Lombardy, the epicentre of its coronavirus pandemic, and several other regions with improving contagion statistics.
Neighbouring Slovenia announced it would ease coronavirus restrictions and suspend a six-month-long curfew starting Monday.
As in India, Europe’s stuttering vaccine roll-out faced multiple hurdles Friday as EU regulators said they were reviewing side effects of the Johnson & Johnson shot and France further limited its use of the AstraZeneca jab.