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PARIS / MADRID (REUTERS) – Europe faces a long battle against coronavirus at least until mid-2021, France warned on Friday (October 23), as anxious governments introduced increasing restrictions to curb the once-accelerating disease. more on the continent.
Daily infections in Europe have more than doubled in the past 10 days, reaching a total of 7.8 million cases and around 247,000 deaths, as a second wave just before winter has crushed hopes of an economic revival.
“When I listen to the scientists, I see that the projections are, at best, until next summer,” French President Emmanuel Macron said during a visit to a hospital near Paris.
France, which surpassed 1 million cases on Friday with a new daily record of more than 42,000, has been one of the worst affected nations and has imposed curfews.
Covid-19 patients already occupy almost half of France’s 5,000 intensive care beds and one of the government advisers warned that the virus was spreading faster than in the spring.
Governments are desperate to prevent a repeat of the blanket shutdowns that brought some control in March and April but strangled economies.
“We are all scared,” said Maria, a 73-year-old retiree in the Slovak town of Dolny Kubin, where officials were testing a trial plan. “I see what is happening and it is terrifying.”
Belgium, another of the worst affected countries, whose foreign minister entered intensive care this week, further limited social contact and banned fans from participating in sports matches.
In the Czech Republic, with the highest per capita infections in Europe, Prime Minister Andrej Babis decided to fire his Health Minister for apparently disobeying mask rules after a meeting at a restaurant that should have been closed.
In Spain, which surpassed the million-case milestone earlier this week, two regions, Castilla y León and Valencia, urged the central government to impose night curfews.
‘Follow the precautions’
Official data shows that Spain already has the highest number of cases in Europe, but the real picture may be even worse, according to Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, who said a nationwide antibody study suggested that the total could exceed 3 millions.
“If we don’t follow precautions, we are putting the lives of those we love the most at risk,” he said.
It is uncertain how long governments will be able to resist the blockades. The governor of Campania, the southern Italian region around Naples that has already imposed a curfew and closed schools, called for a total closure, saying the “half measures” were not working.
“It is necessary to close everything, except those businesses that produce and transport essential goods,” said Vincenzo De Luca.
While health services have not been overwhelmed so far to the extent that they were in the first wave, authorities warned of a likely increase in demand for intensive care beds as colder weather forces more People stay indoors and infections spread.
Italy’s main public health body said the situation was approaching critical levels in many regions and said full tracing of contact chains had become impossible.
With its own hospitals under increasing pressure, the Netherlands began transferring patients to Germany again, after dozens of patients were treated at its larger neighbor during the earlier phase of the crisis.
But public support seen at the start of the crisis has steadily eroded amid an often contradictory public information confusion about the latest restrictions and growing fears about economic costs.
Underscoring the threat, a business survey showed that service sector companies cut sharply as more and more consumers stayed home, increasing the likelihood of a double recession this year in Europe’s single currency zone.
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