Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1220238
13 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 11 MARCH 2020 ENVIRONMENT contrasted with a widening problem else- where in the world. In the US, Donald Trump was planning to announce proposals aimed at curbing the economic fallout from the outbreak. He said the measures would include pay- roll tax relief. The president shook hands with sup- porters earlier in the day and flew back from a Florida fundraiser with a politician who later went into a voluntary quaran- tine because he came into contact with someone who had tested positive for the virus. Trump's incoming chief of staff also went into quarantine, amid concerns over a conservative political gathering an infect- ed person attended. Worldwide, more than 114,000 cases of the virus have been reported in about 100 countries. WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on 9 March that "the threat of a pandemic has become very re- al". The most recent additions are Panama, adding to a few dozen cases in Latin Amer- ica, and Mongolia, which borders China. Authorities there said on 10 March that the country's first virus patient is a French energy worker who met colleagues and travelled while he was infected. restrictions extended nationwide EUROPEAN leaders scrambled for a unified response to the new coronavi- rus as Italy became the first democrat- ic country since World War II to an- nounce a simultaneous quarantine and nationwide curfew. Schools, employers and cities across the region implemented their own piecemeal lockdowns to slow the spread of the highly infectious vi- rus. Schoolchildren in Madrid and university students in Austria and Portugal stayed home, while Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte called on people in the country's hardest-hit province to work from home. Air France canceled thousands of flights, Ireland scrapped the March 17 St. Patrick's Day celebrations and Ma- donna pulled out of concerts in Paris slated for Tuesday and Wednesday. As people and businesses struggle to work with the new restrictions, Euro- pean leaders will hold an emergency call on Tuesday afternoon to discuss a response to the deadly virus. On the cusp of turning into a pandem- ic, the virus has claimed more than 520 lives on the continent. Close to 500 of those deaths have been in It- aly. Prime Minister Giuseppe Con- te called this the country's "darkest hour," ordering Italians to "stay at home" as he explained that "we are forced to impose sacrifices." "This is not an easy situation to live and decisions by governments are not taken lightly," said EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides, speaking at the European Parliament in Brussels. "This cannot be business as usual; we are facing an exception- al situation." All 27 EU nations have now reported cases, she said. Globally, the number of those in- fected has surpassed 113,000, with deaths exceeding 3,900. While China, where the virus originated, is seeing the pace of new infections slowing, there are no indications its spread is in check in Europe. That's driving countries across the region to put more measures in place. In Spain, where confirmed cas- es more than doubled between Sun- day and Monday, authorities closed schools and universities in Madrid and the surrounding area for two weeks starting March 11. In Germany, Health Minister Jens Spahn pushed for gatherings of more than 1,000 people to be canceled, but left the final call on cancellations up to local health authorities. France barred gatherings of 50 or more peo- ple in clusters where infections have soared. Ireland halted the St. Pat- rick's Day parades, which typically attract half a million spectators, with thousands traveling from overseas. Still, the restrictions in Italy are by far the most stringent. After trying to lock down the northern region of Lombardy, Conte moved to widen curbs by decree to the entire nation of more than 60 million. Schools and universities will be closed nationwide, all public events will be canceled, and Italians won't be allowed to travel without a business or health-related justification until April 3. Conte's de- cision came after the number of cases in the country soared by 25% to 9,172 on Monday. In Italy, the impact of the lockdown won't become clear for at least a month, Giovanni Rezza, head of the infectious diseases department at the Superior Health Institute told Corri- ere della Sera. "What matters more than govern- ment measures is how individuals behave," he said. "People haven't re- alized how much they're at risk." With the economy already on the brink of recession, Conte will ask parliament Wednesday for authori- zation to deviate from planned defi- cit targets to fund an economic stim- ulus package. The government may increase the value of the package, including more health and spending and help for businesses and families, to about 10 billion euros ($11.4 bil- lion) from 7.5 billion euros, accord- ing to a deputy minister and two officials who asked not to be named discussing confidential deliberations. Led by Italy lockdown, Europe struggles to limit coronavirus spread