Belgian Prime Minister Sophie Wilmes holds a press conference after a meeting of the National Security Council amid the outbreak of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Brussels, Belgium, July 27, 2020. REUTERS / Francois Lenoir / Pool
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Belgium announced a sharp decline in social contacts on Monday after a surge in coronavirus infections in the past three weeks.
Prime Minister Sophie Wilmes said at a press conference that as of Wednesday, a Belgian family or those living together could only meet five other people in the next four weeks, well below 15 now.
The numbers allowed to attend public events will be halved to 100 indoors and 200 outdoors. Consumers will have to shop on their own, and Wilmes also said that people should work from home as much as possible.
“We are acting again today to keep the situation under control and to avoid a general blockade,” Wilmes said, adding that the infected appeared to be more contagious than when the country entered the blockade in mid-March.
The average number of cases in the past week increased to 279 per day from around 80 in early July. The northern port city of Antwerp has been particularly affected.
Later, the province of Antwerp said it imposed a curfew from 11.30 p.m. to 6 a.m., forcing most work to be done at home, adopting stricter controls in restaurants and bars, and limiting team and contact sports .
In and around the city of Antwerp, events and festivals would not be allowed and fitness centers would have to close.
Last week, Belgium ended further relaxation of the restrictions. For bars and restaurants, masks became mandatory for those who were not seated and customers had to leave contact details to allow tracking.
Belgium, where the European Union and NATO are based, imposed a blockade on March 18 due to COVID-19, which has claimed 9,821 lives in the country, one of the highest per capita mortality figures in the world.
Reports from Marine Strauss @StraussMarine, Philip Blenkinsop, Ed Osmond and David Gregorio edition
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