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Santiago de Chile begins this Friday a mandatory quarantine, decreed on Wednesday after a 60% jump in new cases of coronavirus in 24 hours in the country. The capital concentrates more than 80% of the almost 34,400 infected detected since March, according to official data. But now the authorities warn that the situation is also serious in other cities, such as Valparaíso.
Until now, Chile has opted for a dynamic or selective quarantine strategy, instead of closing cities entirely. But the increase in infections, especially in Santiago in the last 10 days, led the authorities to decree for the first time the complete closure of the Chilean capital, of almost seven million inhabitants.
Only on Wednesday, 2,660 new cases of coronavirus were reported and 11 more died.
Although Santiago for now seems to be the epicenter, it is not the only focus. Dr. Rodrigo Cruz, infectious medicine doctor and Director of the Center for Diagnosis and Investigation of Infectious Diseases of the School of Medicine of the University of Valparaíso, warns that there is a high risk that, after the outbreak detected in the Valparaíso region, cities such as San Antonio, Viña and Valparaíso itself become new great sources of contagion in the coming days.
“In principle, I am not very in favor of total quarantines because they bring complications to the most humble people, and both violence and robbery increase. However, given the fact that we currently have a large part of Santiago in quarantine and the numbers have also grown in the Valparaíso region, the authority should establish a quarantine for about two weeks, “the expert told the Chilean newspaper. Third.
The Plaza de Armas in Santiago de Chile, almost deserted this Wednesday. / EFE
The infectologist added that total quarantines should be implemented in the Valparaíso region, in the San Antonio commune, and sanitary cords at the Viña and Valparaíso entrances. “It would even extend them to neighboring cities. The same would be appropriate for the large urban centers in the north and south of the country that present similar behaviors in the increase of positive cases,” he explained.
“In addition, we must consider that people have collaborated little and that is the main factor. Pandemics work together with the population and little has been done here for it. In the center of Viña it seems like a normal day with people and cars, the same at the Valparaiso fairs, ”the doctor warned.
“Today at the national level we have almost 3 thousand cases: if we continue like this we will have 30 thousand cases in 15 days and that would be catastrophic, the system probably does not have the support capacity to solve it, ”warned the infectologist.
As Cruz explained to Third“This quarantine should be in a limited time to try to contain these next two weeks, with an increase in the number of cases.”
And he remarked: “If we continue to grow exponentially as the number of total cases so far, as a health system it will make us collapse soon and that can have catastrophic results as a country.”
Contagions began to grow in Chile in early May, when the government of President Sebastián Piñera began to raise a “new normal” strategy and a “safe return” after celebrating having reached a “plateau” of infections, with a daily rate that for more than a week ranged between 400 and 500 cases on average.
A couple walks through the center of Santiago de Chile. / AFP
In addition, in recent days, the authorities announced that they have reached an average considered high for a country of almost 18 million inhabitants, with the performance of some 12,000 PCR (nasopharyngeal swab) tests daily.
However, last week the tone of the health authorities changed and then began to talk about the “battle of Santiago”.
“The month of May is being very hard on our country and we have to take appropriate actions at the right time to stop this disease,” said Health Minister Jaime Mañalich on Wednesday, who nevertheless ruled out a collapse in the network of Health.
He said that the case of coronavirus in the country remains low, with 346 deaths since March 3.
The tightening of the restrictions announced on Wednesday, and which will apply from this Friday at 10 at night, implies that people will not be able to leave their homes, and will only be able to buy food or medicine with a permit.
Source: AFP and Clarín
