Page 11 - HOH

A8 WORLD NEWS
Tuesday 25 February 2020
Italy tries to contain virus as isolated towns hunker down

By PAOLO SANTALUCIA, infected. “It is likely that the
GIADA ZAMPANO and more we look, the more we
NICOLE WINFIELD will find,” Capua said. But
Associated Press she stressed that the major-
CODOGNO, Italy (AP) — ity of cases likely wouldn’t
Police manned check- even require a doctor’s
points around quaran- visit and that Italy’s num-
tined towns in Italy’s north bers are “very analogous
on Monday and residents to what we will see in many
stocked up on food as the other European countries.”
country became the focal Civil protection officials in-
point of the outbreak in Eu- sisted that Italy was still a
rope and fears of its cross- safe place to visit. Veneto
border spread. regional president Luca
Croatia, Hungary and Ire- Zaia lamented that he nev-
land advised against travel er imagined he would ever
to the affected areas, and have to cancel Venice’s
Italians traveling abroad Carnival — another eco-
began to feel the effects of nomic blow to the famed
a crackdown: A bus from lagoon city that already
Milan was barricaded by saw tourism plummet after
police in the French city of last year’s floods.
Lyon for health checks for Italy, however, wasn’t tak-
several hours before being Tourists, some of them wearing sanitary masks, stand next to the Vittorio Emanuele Gallery in ing chances and effec-
deemed to be virus-free downtown Milan, Italy, Monday, Feb. 24, 2020. Associated Press tively sealed off a dozen
and sent on its way;Alitalia northern towns where more
passengers arriving in Mau- ready had serious health ing region of Veneto. Italy ness getting enough food than 200 of the cases were
ritius were threatened with problems. The other six vic- has the highest number of in the house, keeping dis- found.
quarantine. tims, also with pre-existing cases outside Asia, under- tance from one another On Monday, police wear-
Civil protection officials medical conditions, were scoring the limits of Italy’s and getting tested. ing face masks manned
said at least 229 people elderly. prevention protocols, the “This wasn’t a very exciting checkpoints along the
have tested positive for the The majority of those most stringent in Europe. place to begin with,” said road into Codogno, south-
virus in Italy. State television known to be infected with Officials still hadn’t pin- Andrea Casalis, a 27-year- east of Milan, where the
on Monday night reported COVID-19 hail from two pointed the origin of Italy’s old from Vo’Euganeo, a first patient to test positive
the seventh death of an main clusters — some 10 outbreak or whether the town of 3,500 people at the for the virus was hospital-
infected person — that of towns in Lombardy and an- clusters were related. With epicenter of the Veneto ized last week.
a 62-year-old man who al- other area in the neighbor- the numbers rising, authori- cluster. “Since we can’t go Residents wearing face
ties were struggling to con- to the bar, there’s no much masks and gloves lined up
tain the number of cases, left to do.” at Codogno’s supermarket
which by Monday had Casalis had been due to to stock up on food, only
spread to a half-dozen re- start a new job in the food to find out the market was
gions and prompted Aus- sector a few miles out of still closed on orders of the
tria to temporarily halt rail town, but that is now on mayor. Later, groups of four
traffic across its border with hold — evidence of the at a time were allowed into
Italy. cascading economic ef- the bakery in nearby Casa-
“These rapid develop- fect the outbreak is begin- lpusterlengo, and one at a
ments over the weekend ning to wreak on the north- time into the pharmacy.
have shown how quickly ern powerhouse of Italy’s Italian farm lobby Coldiretti
this situation can change,” economy. reported a 5%-10% increase
EU Health Commissioner “I try to stay optimistic, but in fresh fruit and produce
Stella Kyriakides said in the perception of what’s purchases this weekend
Brussels. “We need to take going on changes subjec- across the country, as Ital-
this situation of course very tively,” he said. ians stocked up fearing
seriously, but we must not While Italian authorities possible future quarantines
give in to panic, and, even canceled soccer matches, even in regions that hadn’t
more importantly, to disin- Masses and closed schools, registered any cases. Hand
formation.” museums, theaters and disinfectant and face
On Tuesday, Kyriakides will even Venice’s famed Car- masks were in short supply;
meet in Rome with Italy’s nival, they also sought to in Genoa — which hasn’t
health ministers, those from calm fears by noting the vi- had any cases — the su-
bordering countries — Aus- rus’ low mortality rate. permarket shelves were
tria, France, Slovenia and Speaking on state-run empty.
Switzerland, as well as the RAI news, virologist Ilaria Civil protection chief An-
ministers from Germany Capua of the University of gelo Borrelli acknowledged
and Croatia. Florida noted that Italy’s that there were some sup-
For Italians barricaded high number of cases were ply issues with the virus test
in the dozen small towns due to the fact that Italy kits, and Lombardy officials
around the two main clus- was “actively seeking them announced they were no
ters of the outbreak, the out.” More than 3,000 peo- longer automatically test-
outlook for the next two ple have been tested for ing people who had come
weeks appeared bleak, the virus, most of whom had into contact with infected
with the only order of busi- direct contact with those patients. q