Corona virus in Europe: France facing new emergency law - Spain has more than 1,000 deaths

The corona virus continues to spread. Europe is particularly affected. France, Spain, Belgium - there are drastic developments everywhere.

• The corona virus * paralyzes public life in Europe .
• Tens of thousands have been infected across the continent , thousands have succumbed to the disease .
• In Belgium, there is a national curfew until April.

Update of March 20, 4:40 pm: In Spain, infections and deaths continue to increase. After there were more than 830 people on Friday morning, 1002 people are said to have died of the consequences of the coronavirus *. This was confirmed by the head of the Center for Health Emergencies, Fernando Simón , at a press conference in Madrid on Friday. Infections in the country severely affected by the coronavirus rose from 2,833 to 19,980 . There has been a strict curfew in the country since Saturday.

Corona virus in Europe: curfews in France result in fines for the homeless

Update of March 20, 2020, 4:05 pm: In France, the curfew has been in effect since Tuesday to help contain the coronavirus *. Failure to do so will result in a fine of 135 euros, but the French authorities have not expected a few exceptions. In several cities such as Paris or Lyon, fines have already been imposed on the homeless .

The Fédération des acteurs de la solidarité (FAS), an umbrella organization of around 800 aid organizations, called for the end of the punitive measures for those affected. In Paris and Lyon the prefecture has now been turned on to deal with the cases. According to the French authorities, several dozen homeless people in France are infected with the coronavirus *. A reception center is to be built for them shortly, and the healthy homeless are to be accommodated in empty hotels.

Corona virus in Europe: France before emergency law - the goal is billion dollar aid for the economy

Update of March 20, 2020, 12:15 p.m .: In the ongoing race against the coronavirus *, the French Senate has given its approval for a special emergency law. The draft law, which was passed by a large majority on Friday, enables a health emergency to be declared.

The French government wants to use the emergency law to provide billions in aid for the ailing economy. After the first round of local elections was stopped last Sunday, the postponement of the second round to June was also recorded in the draft.

However, the draft law must still exist in the French National Assembly, the lower house of parliament. Should it be passed, the government would also have the opportunity to implement decisions by decree . Prime Minister Édouard Philippe made it clear that this was not a restriction of freedom (as was the case with the Emergency Act after the 2015 terrorist attacks), but rather general measures to combat the corona virus *.

Corona virus in Europe: Spain is closing the hotels - 830 deaths have already been confirmed

Update of March 20, 2020, 7.15 a.m .: The Spanish government ordered the temporary closure of all hotels in the country on Thursday due to the coronavirus crisis . As a result of the curfew imposed at the weekend, other tourist accommodations such as pensions or campsites must also close their doors, according to a regulation by the Ministry of Health. The houses now have a maximum of seven days for this. Only security and maintenance personnel may stay.

The only exceptions are quarters in which people are housed for a longer period of time or live permanently - provided that they have the necessary infrastructure to protect and isolate people.

By the evening the number of confirmed cases in Spain had risen to around 18,000. More than 830 people have already died from the virus . The curfew is initially valid for 15 days, but could then be extended by Parliament.

Corona in Europe: 108 new cases in France - dramatic situation on the German border

Update of March 19, 9:23 pm: The Covid 19 pandemic continues to spread rapidly in France. So far, 372 people have died, 108 more than the previous day, according to the Ministry of Health. This corresponds to an increase of 40.9 percent .

In France, nearly 11,000 people have been infected so far, according to figures from Thursday evening, some 1900 more than the day before. A good 4,700 people are treated in hospitals. According to Health Director Jérôme Salomon, the epidemic is "significant and is spreading".

6:20 p.m .: The Netherlands is also badly affected by the effects of the corona virus - and politics, as in many countries, is currently increasingly in focus. Bruno Bruins, Minister of Medical Care, Sports and Social Affairs, most recently embodied the role of Corona Minister. Now the 56-year-old has resigned.

Bruins was responsible for fighting the pandemic and collapsed in parliament yesterday. According to his own statement, he passed out after weeks of hard work.

3:24 pm: In Spain , the number of deaths caused by the coronavirus pandemic has increased dramatically within 24 hours. It increased by almost 30 percent to 767 , as the Ministry of Health in Madrid announced on Thursday. The number of infections detected grew by around 25 percent to 17,147 . It is expected that this number will continue to rise significantly in the next few days because tests for the novel pathogen are now more readily available.

Este domingo volveré a reunirme por videoconferencia con los presidentes autonómicos. Trabajamos sin descanso para reforzar todas las líneas de coordinación y colaboración con las CC.AA. frente al # COVID19.

Hoy, reunión del Comité de Gestión Técnica. #EsteVirusLoParamosUnidos pic.twitter.com/nqVkkpRgpi

Spain, along with China , Italy and Iran, is among the countries most affected by the coronavirus pandemic worldwide. Similar situations could threaten in the future in Africa.

Corona in Europe: alarming figures from Spain - curfew will not be met

In the capital city of Madrid alone, 498 deaths have been reported in connection with the Covid-19 lung disease caused by the virus. With 6777 cases, 40 percent of the infections previously discovered in Spain were detected in Madrid .

A curfew has been in effect in Spain since Saturday to contain the pandemic. According to the police, 48 people have been temporarily arrested in the past 24 hours for violations of the restrictions on freedom of movement. Curfews have also been ordered in Germany: the first was in Bavaria. Does North Rhine-Westphalia follow this example? The German virologist Christian Drosten, on the other hand, spoke about a possible drug - but he has little hope.

Coronavirus in Europe: France has to transfer patients - crisis on the border with Germany is worsening

12:08: The corona virus has a firm grip on the world, especially Europe . The situation is particularly precarious in Italy, but there are also regions in Germany and France that are particularly affected.

In northeastern France, including Alsace , the situation is so serious that patients are now being flown south - because there are simply no beds available in Grand Est .

Six patients in critical condition had been picked up from clinics in Mulhouse (Mulhouse) and Colmar to take them to Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg international airport, the regional newspaper “Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace” reported on Wednesday. The French Defense Minister Florence Parly said the patients would be taken to Toulon and Marseille on Twitter.

2. Evacuation sanitaire prévue aujourd'hui de 6 patients depuis Mulhouse vers Marseille et Toulon par avion militaire (capacité dite "Morphée"). @Armees_Gouv @santearmees @Armee_de_lair

How many patients were transferred in total was initially unknown. Preparations for the establishment of an army hospital in Mulhouse had also started, Parly wrote. This will include an additional intensive care unit with 30 beds . The personnel for this come from the military. The main aim is to relieve the burden on the hospitals in the Haut-Rhin department on the border with Germany .

Corona crisis in France: patients are flown out - intensive care units occupied

According to the prefecture, the intensive care units there are fully occupied due to the Covid 19 epidemic . The stations in the Bas-Rhin department are also very busy.

According to the regional health authority, around 1820 infections were registered in Grand Est by Tuesday afternoon, around 700 of them in the Haut-Rhin department alone . 61 people died in Grand Est.

Corona crisis in Europe: Netherlands close borders - Spain faces major problems

Update of March 19, 11:25 a.m .: The corona crisis in Europe continues to worsen. Now the next country has closed its borders. The Netherlands has ordered a de facto entry ban for non-EU citizens. From Thursday (6 p.m.) it will initially apply for 30 days , the press office told the government.

The governments of the 27 EU countries had previously agreed on additional entry restrictions for the Schengen area; Germany already implemented this on Tuesday.

Corona virus in Europe: Netherlands imposes entry ban on non-EU citizens

Meanwhile, the government in The Hague does not rule out further measures in the fight against the novel corona virus , the Dutch news agency ANP reported. However, the cabinet and a large majority of MPs have so far been against a total curfew .

This was made clear again in a debate in parliament with Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Wednesday.

In a Haags ziekenhuis sprak ik vanochtend met mensen van het ondersteunend personeel the essentieel werk do om onze zorg draaiende te houden. I have a large living room in front of a hard factory uitgesproken. pic.twitter.com/fNszLiveLz

Rutte visited a hospital in The Hague on Thursday. He thanked the employees who "do important work to maintain our care". He praised: "I expressed my great admiration and appreciation for your hard work."

Meanwhile, in the United States, it does not seem to be fully clear how serious the situation is. Cologne's mayor Henriette Reker, on the other hand, no longer rules out a curfew for North Rhine-Westphalia.

Corona crisis in Europe: Situation in France is coming to a head - Spain is facing major problems

Update at 8:43 p.m .: The number of people infected with the coronavirus is also increasing in Spain . On Wednesday, the number grew by around 2,000 to almost 14,000, the dpa reports. The number of deaths increased from 525 to 598. Spain is the second most affected country in Europe after Italy.

The Madrid region continues to be hardest hit. There, the authorities counted around 5,600 infected people on Wednesday. 390 people have already died of the virus in the capital.

According to the Health Emergency Agency, there is also positive news . Data and statistics should continue to be handled with caution, but the rate of increase in new infections appears to have slowed.

Corona crisis in Europe: Situation in France is worsening - high increase in infected people

Update at 8:05 p.m .: In France , the number of people infected with corona has risen again massively . The number of people who tested positive for the virus is currently 9134, said health director Jérôme Salomon. That is an increase of more than 1400 cases within a day. The number of deaths also increased enormously. It grew by 89 cases to 264.

Salomon also said that over 900 patients were in serious condition. Half of the patients in the intensive care unit were younger than 60 years. He therefore called on the population to hand over unused masks from private households to "hospitals, health centers or pharmacies." In order to stop the spread of the Corona virus, a curfew has been in force in France since Tuesday.

Corona crisis in Europe: Luxembourg with emergency regulations: Large fines threaten

Update at 19:38: In the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, a number of emergency ordinances came into force in Luxembourg on Wednesday. Prime Minister Xavier Bettel announced on Wednesday evening in Luxembourg City that violations of strict exit restrictions would result in fines. Cafes or restaurants that are still open in the future would have to pay a fine of 4,000 euros. In the event of repetition, it will be doubled. Anyone traveling on the streets without a good reason will be fined 145 euros.

Corona virus in Europe: Britain closes schools

Update at 7:35 p.m .: Great Britain is now tackling the coronavirus pandemic
School closings . The regulation will go into effect nationwide on Friday afternoon, UK Education Minister Gavin Williamson said Wednesday in the House of Commons in London. The measure applies for an indefinite period.

Governments in Edinburgh and Cardiff had announced school closings a few hours earlier. Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she could not currently say whether the schools would open again before the summer holidays. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday that he wanted to avoid school closures.

British supermarkets meanwhile have announced that they will only be able to open their own opening hours for older people, pregnant women and the frail as of Thursday. In addition, hamster purchases should be further prevented.

The death toll in the UK rose to 104 on Wednesday. On Tuesday, the government had spoken of 71 deaths and 2,626 confirmed infections with the novel corona virus, which triggers Covid-19 lung disease.

Corona crisis in Europe: Mandatory mouthguard in the Czech Republic - Hungary temporarily opens the border

Update at 4:50 p.m .: On Wednesday, Hungary lifted its strict entry restrictions due to the Corona epidemic at short notice. The borders were originally closed since Tuesday. But today numerous Bulgarians, Romanians and Serbs were allowed to drive through the country to get to their home. The border should be open until Thursday at 5 a.m., the police said.

The situation on the Austrian-Hungarian border had previously worsened. At the Nickelsdorf border crossing there were occasional traffic jams of up to 50 kilometers.

Corona crisis in Europe: mouthguard compulsion in the Czech Republic - France relocates infected people

Update at 2:56 p.m .: As a further measure in the fight against the corona virus , the Czech Republic is now introducing a mouthguard compulsion in public . Anyone wishing to be in public must wear a mouth and nose cover. The cabinet of Populist Prime Minister Andrei Babis decided on Wednesday. A spokeswoman for the Interior Ministry in Prague said that medical mouth and respiratory masks or a scarf, a scarf or a balaclava can be used to cover the mouth and nose. The measure is to take effect on Thursday night.

The Czech Republic had previously declared a state of emergency and asked citizens to isolate themselves as much as possible at home. According to the authorities, there are 464 confirmed coronavirus infections in the Czech Republic. A problem that could be exacerbated by the new regulation: Even the simplest surgical masks have been in short supply in the Czech Republic for days. Protective items are now becoming scarce for medical personnel as well.

Corona crisis in Europe: France controls curfew and transfers CoVid-19 patients

France is also taking further steps in the midst of the Corona crisis. In Paris, controls on the curfew imposed across France have increased. On Wednesday, the police increasingly checked exit forms on the streets of the French capital. Anyone who violates the curfew requirements has had to pay a fine of 135 euros since Wednesday. In the event of serious violations, a fine of EUR 375 is possible .

The French army has started moving corona patients from the epidemic hotspot in southern Alsace to other hospitals . Six patients who were in critical condition were picked up from clinics in Mulhouse and Colmar. They would be taken to Toulon and Marseille in the south of France, French Defense Minister Florence Parly said on Twitter. At first it was not known how many patients should be transferred in total.

France's women can now also benefit from a special regulation in the midst of the Corona crisis . You can get the birth control pill without a new prescription until May 31st . This is to ensure that French women can continue their treatment even during the restrictions in the fight against the spread of viruses, the State Secretary for Gender Equality, Marlène Schiappa, announced on Wednesday. One restriction: women have to present an old prescription in the pharmacy. According to a government decree, this applies not only to the pill, but also to other medications.

Corona crisis in Europe: Hundreds of Scheiz soldiers support local hospitals

Update at 12.50 p.m .: Hundreds of soldiers have arrived in Switzerland to support the hospitals in the coronavirus pandemic. This is the largest mobilization in the Swiss army since World War II, said Defense Minister Viola Amherd. The first reserve forces with medical training were brought in on Tuesday without any problems, reported Aldo Schellenberg, Army Chief Operations, on Wednesday on the Swiss radio station SRF.

The units are well prepared for deployment: “The specialized medical teams practice precisely these cases in the recruit school and also in the repeat courses. This includes supporting hospitals in nursing or logistics, ”said Schellenberg. The army initially plans to make a total of 8,000 soldiers available by the end of June. They should be used in patient care, but also in logistics, something for patient transportation.

Update at 9.53 a.m .: After the EU imposed a far- reaching entry ban for non-EU citizens at its external borders on Tuesday, more than 100 flights were affected by the measure at Frankfurt Airport today. Now it must be checked which passengers are allowed to enter and which are not, said a spokesman for the federal police. A good 5000 people were checked by morning. Non-EU citizens are therefore rejected and the airlines are asked to fly them back home. At the largest German airport, a flight from Turkey was affected on Tuesday evening.

Corona crisis in Europe: two infected people in Balkan country Montenegro for the first time

Update of March 18, 9.29 a.m .: The corona virus is still on the rise in Europe . Infections with the novel virus have now been detected for the first time in the south-east European state of Montenegro . The people who tested positive were two women, Prime Minister Dusko Markovic said on Tuesday evening at a press conference in the capital Podgorica.

Both had previously been abroad in areas at high risk of infection, he added. But he didn't go any further where the two women had been. He described her state of health as stable .

Update from 22.09: The internationally known Bulgarian ski area Bansko has been quarantined for two weeks in the fight against the spread of the new corona virus . The measure was imposed on Tuesday evening after three people in the small town with 10,000 inhabitants tested positive for the corona virus. Among them is a nine-year-old boy from Great Britain who has been in Bansko since Friday, as the head of the medical crisis team, Wenzislaw Mutaftschijski explained.

Corona crisis in Europe: In Belgium, a curfew of almost three weeks applies from Wednesday afternoon

Update from 8:55 p.m .: The TV reports from Belgium have been confirmed (see entry from 8:08 p.m.). From Wednesday noon, there is an almost three-week curfew across the country. There are only exceptions for absolutely necessary things, said Prime Minister Sophie Wilmès after an hour-long session of the National Security Council in the capital Brussels, where numerous EU institutions are also based.

Update from 8.45pm: In order to slow the spread of the corona virus, the Danish government continues to restrict public life. From 10:00 a.m. onwards, no restaurants, cafes, pubs or discotheques may be open. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said. Gyms, tanning salons, hairdressing salons and large shopping centers should also close. Frederiksen emphasized that the ban did not apply to grocery stores, pharmacies and the delivery of goods. Meetings with more than ten people should no longer be allowed.

Update from 8:08 p.m .: In Belgium , according to various television stations, there is a curfew from Wednesday midday to April 6th. Citizens would then only be able to leave the house for essential things because of the corona virus, as a reporter from the news broadcaster LN24 reported at the meeting of the National Security Council. The TV station RTBF also reported on the upcoming measure.

Update from 7.44 p.m .: Germany wants to immediately implement the extensive ban on entry into the European Union, according to information from the German Press Agency. This was announced by the federal government, it said from EU circles. The mirror had previously reported.

Corona crisis in Europe: 55,000 infected in the UK? -Two WHO employees fell ill

Update from 6:36 p.m .: According to official estimates , 55,000 people in the UK have already contracted the corona virus . However, the infection was only detected in 1950 people until Tuesday morning. This corresponds to an increase of 26 percent within 24 hours, government advisors from research in London reported. The aim is to keep the death toll below 20,000 , said medical scientist Patrick Vallance in parliament. "That would be a good result." Still, it was still terrible.

Update from 5:58 p.m .: As it became known, two employees of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva are infected with the coronavirus. Both stayed at home immediately after the first symptoms appeared , WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier said in Geneva on Tuesday. The two infected are doing well according to the circumstances. The colleagues had already been informed. Hundreds of employees at the WHO headquarters in Geneva have been working entirely in their home office since Tuesday.

Corona crisis in Europe: France regulates the sale of acetaminophen

Update from 5:22 pm: France restricts the sale of paracetamol due to the corona virus. To guarantee availability, pharmacists could only sell one pack per patient without symptoms such as fever or pain or two packs of symptoms without a prescription from Wednesday, the French health authority ANSM said. Internet sales of paracetamol, ibuprofen and aspirin-based drugs will be suspended. The authority warned against storing paracetamol unnecessarily or overdosing.

Corona virus in Europe: Spain decides package of measures with record amount

First report from March 17, 2020, 5.10 p.m .:

Madrid - The Spanish government will mobilize a record 200 billion euros to support the economy and workers in the corona crisis . That is about 20 percent of the gross domestic product and the largest package of measures that Spain has adopted in the history of its democracy, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said in a television speech on Tuesday after a Ministerial Council meeting. "These are exceptional times that require exceptional measures," said the head of government.

Among other things, the money will be used to support the unemployed, to prevent the collapse of the production structure and to ensure the liquidity of small and medium-sized companies . The 45-page royal decree also provides for a deferral of payments for mortgages - especially for employees who lose their jobs due to the crisis and the self-employed who suffer a drastic drop in income.

Spain is one of the countries most affected by the crisis. On Tuesday, the number of confirmed cases was 11,000, so far there have been 500 deaths.

You can find all previous developments on the continent in this ticker.

Drastic measures are also being implemented in Germany. CDU politician Friedrich Merz is also among those infected. In the ARD program "Hart but fair", a virologist announced "a long period of deprivation". Chancellor Angela Merkel's contingency plan includes extreme measures. In a 90-second speech, moderator Claus Kleber in the “Today Journal” explains the seriousness of the situation and explains why we should stay at home. There are far too few respirators in Germany. According to a manufacturer, the fault for this should also lie with the Ministry of Health and Minister Jens Spahn.

The first coronavirus case in China is said to have occurred in November. Attempts by the government to cover up?

* merkur.de is part of the nationwide Ippen-Digital editors network.

dpa

Rubric list image: © AFP / GABRIEL BOUYS