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LISBON – The governments of Portugal and France announced new measures on Wednesday to contain the second wave of Covid-19.
In Portugal, the alert level across the country was raised with a calamity decree, the last level before alertness. The measure, which will take effect from 12:00 noon on Thursday (8:00 p.m., Brasilia time), is a response to the increase in cases of Covid-19, the second wave that affects much of the continent. European.
In France, a four-week curfew was decreed in the Ile-de-France region, which encompasses Paris, and in nine more cities, including Toulouse, Lyon and Grenoble.
In Portugal, it was also announced that health and safety authorities will intensify inspections, either in public spaces or in companies and restaurants. Those who violate the guidelines can face fines of up to 10,000 euros (about 65,500 reais).
– Unfortunately, Portugal is no exception and we can classify the evolution of the pandemic in our country as a serious evolution – said Prime Minister António Costa. – People can become infected and transmit the virus without realizing it because they do not feel anything. The only way to make sure we are not broadcasting [a Covid-19] it is, in all circumstances, caring at all times.
The government will also present to Parliament, as a matter of urgency, a bill to make the use of masks mandatory in the streets, and not only in closed spaces and public transport, as has happened so far. A proposal will also be sent to the Legislature to make the use of the Stay Away Covid contagion detection application mandatory in academic and work settings, in public administration and among security forces.
According to the Prime Minister of the Socialist Party, group gatherings with more than five people will not be allowed (until now, the limit was 10), while university events such as hot drinks, beers and phone pranks will be suspended.
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Personal celebrations, such as weddings and baptisms, will be limited to 50 people, who must respect the social distance guidelines. Last week, the general director of Health, Graça Freitas, said that events of this type “have been responsible for 67% of the cases reported in the country in recent days.”
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Costa, who announced the decision after a meeting of the Council of Ministers, stressed that, for now, the rules of teleworking and the country’s borders will be kept open, maintaining the precautionary measures.
Portugal entered a state of emergency on March 18, when there were 78 confirmed cases in the country, which was placed in confinement. The measure was extended three other times and was finally suspended on May 2. At that time, the alert level dropped to a state of calamity, amid gradual deflation.
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As routine was resumed and cases were kept under control, the country entered in July with most of its regions on alert, the mildest, or in a contingency, intermediate situation. By the end of that month, the entire territory was already on alert.
Since then, however, the number of cases has grown rapidly, as in several other European countries. The number of daily diagnoses increases every day and, this Wednesday, it reached its record since the start of the pandemic: the country registered 2,072 new infections.
In total, Portugal has already had 91,193 confirmed infections, with 2,117 deaths.
