Corona – Zero infection – now thousands of Easter tourists come

– It’s almost unbelievable, you know, but we haven’t had a single case. Knock on wood. But lodge residents and tourists alike have put in a fantastic effort. I’ve even gotten calls from people wondering if it’s okay for them to go to the store to buy milk.

The mayor of Nissedal, Halvor Homme, does everything but complain about visitors to the township. The town with 1,500 inhabitants is one of the few municipalities in Norway that is still registered with zero cases of corona.

In a few days, Easter will be the second since the start of the pandemic. With 2,500 cabins, 1,500 more than houses in the municipality, there is no doubt that the number of inhabitants in Nissedal will increase considerably next week. In a normal Easter up to 10,000, according to Mayor Homme.

These are the new measures

Follow the recommendations

Tuesday night he sits and watches the news on replay, when Dagbladet calls. The mayor of the zero infection municipality has nothing to complain about the new government regulations and advice.

– Until now we have followed the recommendations and advice of the government most of the time. We will have a new meeting tomorrow, and we will probably continue that trend, says Homme, who understands the measures that are being introduced.

Zero infection has not come for free for the small municipality of Telemark, either. The mayor mentions the last year as a state of emergency, also around 1500 in Nissedal, who, like most in the country, have lived under strict restrictions.

– And that may be the reason why we have not had an infection, thinks Homme.

Enter security

With Easter in sight, the municipality is making new movements in addition to the national ones that are being introduced. With that, he hopes to save himself from the last great challenge that will be Easter. Because after that, expect there to be light in the tunnel as summer approaches.

– Now we are in a hurry, and then we just have to persevere. But we must do the best we can to make Easter go well. Typically the stores here have a year-over-year sales record at Easter. This year, there will probably not be as much demand, but we will continue to introduce store security to ensure that infection control is adhered to, says Homme.

Cautious tourists

He himself considers home tourists to be very obedient and does not believe that Easter is an exception. Even though the municipality has not received a bandage order, it still sees visitors wearing bandages and staying longer in the hut than before.

– There are not many who go to the store just to invent something. They leave if there is something they have to buy, and then they are careful. A fantastic effort has simply been made, both from locals and tourists, says Homme, who also acts for the young people who return home at Easter.

– We don’t have high school here, so many will be going home to family next week. That is why we have said that we have a good capacity and a low threshold for people to come and test themselves when they return home. Then we can only cross our fingers so we can get through Easter, says Homme.