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Passers-by in Lisbon (March): 928 new infections within 24 hours
Photo: Nuno Cruz / NurPhoto / Getty Images
Lisbon will be sealed off for around two and a half days due to a worrying increase in corona infection cases.
From Friday afternoon to Monday morning, the 2.8 million residents of the Portuguese capital are only allowed to leave the greater Lisbon area for good reason, as the government announced on Thursday.
Foreigners will only be allowed to enter in exceptional cases.
With 928 new infections within 24 hours, Lisbon recorded its highest value since February 19 on Thursday.
That was around 75 percent of all cases registered in Portugal (1233).
However, only around 27 percent of all 10.3 million citizens of Portugal live in the “Area Metropolitana” of Lisbon.
"Essential Measures"
In Lisbon, the delta variant of the corona virus, which was first discovered in India, is currently spreading relatively strongly, said Presidential Minister Mariana Vieira da Silva.
"It is not easy to take such measures, but we thought they were essential to prevent the current situation in Lisbon from spreading across the country," she said.
In February, the health system in Portugal threatened to collapse, and the German armed forces also sent helpers.
Portugal then successfully fought against Corona and temporarily had one of the lowest values in Europe in the spring.
The state of emergency to contain the pandemic therefore ended on May 1 after five and a half months.
However, the nationwide 14-day incidence rose from 55 to 87 within a few weeks, according to the EU authority ECDC.
lukewarm / dpa