One quarter of Italy’s population is in lockdown under a new emergency decree Sunday.
Italy has experienced more COVID-19 deaths than any other country outside China.
After more than 230 deaths, the government has decided to lockdown the northern part of the country, including the Lombardy region and the financial capital, Milan.
In addition, Italy will shutter 14 other provinces, including Veneto, home of Venice.
Travel into and out the areas will be highly restricted until early next month, as the country seeks to slow the tide of fatalities from the virus. Museums, theaters, cinemas and other entertainment venues have also been ordered to close.
Italy has also asked retired doctors to return to service to help halt the spread of the disease.
In a break with centuries of tradition, the pope delivered the annual Angelus prayer live Sunday in Saint Peter’s Square and he did not appear on the papal balcony to great the faithful. The Vatican which has already reported one coronavirus case is hoping to keep crowd size down in the tiny city-state in its attempt to stop the virus.
Pope Francis delivered the prayer “via livestream by Vatican News and on screens in Saint Peter’s Square,” the Vatican said in a statement.
Elsewhere in the world
Iran said Sunday the coronavirus has killed 49 more people in the last 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 194. The Middle Eastern country has 6,566 confirmed cases.
In China, a hotel used to quarantine people with the virus collapsed Sunday. At least six people were killed in the incident.
The virus first erupted in China late last year.
Reuters reports that at least two federal health screeners at Los Angeles International Airport have tested positive for the coronavirus and have been ordered to self-quarantine until March 17. The news agency said screeners, many of them federal workers, had already “asked their supervisors . . . to change official protocols and require stronger masks.”
The Grand Princess cruise ship, hit by a coronavirus outbreak, is scheduled to dock in Oakland, California, Monday. The ship has been held at sea without a dock since last, week when San Francisco refused to allow the ship to return there because of the outbreak. The Grand Princess is carrying more than 3,500 passengers and crew.
Worldwide, there were more than 106,000 infections Sunday, while the death toll has surpassed 3,500.
Bahrain has announced it will hold its Formula 1 Grand Prix later this month, but without any spectators.
“Given the continued spread of COVID -19 globally, convening a major sporting event, which is open to the public and allows thousands of international travellers and local fans to interact in close proximity would not be the right thing to do at the present time,” the Bahrain International Circuit said Sunday.