LOCKDOWN PANIC
Italy coronavirus chaos: thousands race to escape quarantine of 16million after death toll soars by 133 in a DAY
ITALY was plunged into chaos yesterday after details of a plan to quarantine 16 million people in the north of the country was leaked to the press - leading to a mass exodus to the south.
As the country became the second-worst affected in the world, Italy introduced drastic measures to stop the deadly spread of coronavirus.
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More than a quarter of the population was put into lockdown as deaths in the country rose by 133 in a single day.
However, after details of the extraordinary quarantine plan were leaked, thousands tried to flee in panic, leading to fears over the virus's potential to spread to the south.
Police and medics wearing hazmat suits waited in Salerno in southwestern Italy for passengers who had jumped on overnight trains from Lombardy.
Roberto Burioni, a professor of microbiology and virology at the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University in Milan, said: "What happened with the news leak has caused many people to try to escape, causing the opposite effect of what the decree is trying to achieve.
"Unfortunately some of those who fled will be infected with the disease."
Michele Emiliano, the president of Puglia, signed an order on Sunday forcing all those arriving from the north in the coming hours to go into quarantine.
He wrote on Facebook: "Do not bring the Lombardy, Veneto and Emilia epidemic to your Puglia. You are carrying the virus into the lungs of your brothers and sisters, your grandparents, uncles, cousins and parents."
The unprecedented measures were introduced as more than 7,375 cases of the deadly bug were confirmed in Italy - with almost 1,500 cases diagnosed every 24 hours for the last two days.
Italy has been the worst country in Europe to have been hit by the outbreak, with 366 people dying after testing positive.
The latest figures show a terrifying 25 per cent increase in infections.
It also means Italy now has the highest number of confirmed cases outside of China.
The extreme measures will remain in place for at least four weeks until April 3.
Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte signed the decree in the early hours of Sunday morning, which will effectively lockdown 16 million residents in Lombardy and northern Italy.
What it means:
- Theatres and cinema suspended
- Religious ceremonies, including weddings and funerals, banned
- Sporting events cancelled
- School and university classes cancelled
- Gyms, pools and museums closed
- Dance schools, pubs, disco and bingo all suspended
- Meetings that involve health care personnel suspended
He said: "We want to guarantee the health of our citizens. We understand that these measures will impose sacrifices, sometimes small and sometimes very big.
"But this is a time where we must take responsibility for ourselves."
He added: "We have to limit the spread of the virus and prevent our hospitals from being overwhelmed."
The new measures say people should not enter or leave Lombardy, Italy's richest region, as well as 14 provinces in four other regions, including the cities of Venice, Modena, Parma, Piacenza, Reggio Emilia and Rimini.
The measures include cancelling sporting events and school classes, with religious ceremonies also suspended.
Restaurants and cafes can open between 6am and 6pm but customers must sit at least a metre apart.
Those in the affected regions have been told to stay home as much as possible - facing three months jail if they break quarantine.
The Foreign Office also issued travel advice warning against all but essential travel to affected areas - but Brits stuck in the no go zones will be allowed to return home.
And budget airline easyJet is now cancelling flights to affected regions following the lockdown.
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The airline said affected passengers would be informed of cancellations by email and text message.
The decree applies to: Lombardy (the whole region) and the 14 provinces of: Modena, Parma, Piacenza, Reggio Emilia, Rimini, Pesaro e Urbino, Venezia, Padova, Treviso, Asti, Alessandria, Novara Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, Vercelli.
Deaths due to the infectious virus have risen in Italy, by 36 to 233, while the number of patients in intensive care climbed to 567, up 23 per cent from the day before. Of the 5,883 Italians originally infected, 589 have fully recovered.
The northern regions of Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna and Veneto account for 85 per cent of the cases.
Among those affected is the leader of Italy's co-ruling Democratic Party Nicola Zingaretti, who tested positive for the virus.
And in an extraordinary measure aimed at discouraging crowds, Pope Francis didn't appear at a Vatican palazzo window to deliver his Sunday noon Angelus blessing and remarks.
Instead, a video of his reading his comments and reciting prayers standing at a lectern near a microphone in the Vatican's apostolic library was beamed on maxi-screens set up in St. Peters Square to the faithful.
The bells of St. Peter's Basilica tolled as the window opened and Francis appeared for a few seconds to wave to the people below in the square.
But he made no comments from the window, having already delivered the broadcast remarks.
The measure which was announced on Saturday was aimed at discouraging crowds from gathering in the square, where on days with good weather like this Sunday as many as 40,000 people can turn out to watch the pope in the window.
Several thousands of tourists and faithful turned out anyway, scattered across the vast, cobblestone square.
There are currently more than 106,000 cases of the bug globally, with more than 3,590 deaths.
Italy wasn't the only country limiting activities as coronavirus spreads.
Around the world, events and festivals were called off. Travel restrictions and warnings were issued.
And in Australia, women were filmed brawling over the last toilet roll in a supermarket.
The Pope also cancelled his Vatican addresses and will hold services via live stream to stop people from gathering.
The UK's death toll rose to three last night, with more than 200 cases.
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Meanwhile in China, seven people were killed when a hotel being used to quarantine coronavirus patients collapsed.
A number of people remain missing, with rescue workers desperately searching the rubble in the Chinese city of Quanzhou in Fujian Province on Saturday.
It is unclear what caused the building collapse.
Coronavirus map showing COVID-19 cases worldwide
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