The Austrian capital and its surroundings will be subject to new containment for Easter, the government announced on Wednesday March 24, which hopes to ease the pressure on hospitals against a background of increased Covid-19 contamination.
Read also: Confined or under curfew, Catholics prepare to celebrate Easter under health restrictions
Residents of Vienna, as well as those in the regions of Lower Austria and Burgenland, "
where the British variant is most prevalent
", are urged to stay in their homes between April 1 and April 6, the Minister of Justice said. Health Rudolf Anschober at an evening press conference.
Like the three previous confinements, however, it will be possible to go out for shopping, exercise and other pressing reasons.
Non-essential shops and museums will be closed, while students will take distance learning courses in the week following the Easter holidays.
Wearing extended FFP2 masks
Beyond this period, the obligation to wear an FFP2 mask, already in force in public transport and shops, will be extended to all confined spaces in the presence of more than one person.
Testing, which Austria carries out on a large scale, will be further intensified, at workplaces and at border controls.
Shopping enthusiasts will also have to present a negative sesame when entering shops, as is already the case for hairdressing, beauty and massage salons.
"
No firm decision
" has yet been taken with regard to religious services, said Rudolf Anschober, questioned on the subject when neighboring Germany had to give up depriving Christians of mass in the face of protests.
Barely three weeks ago, the Austrian government mentioned a reopening of the terraces at the end of March but it was overtaken by the third wave and only the region of Voralberg (West) was able to taste again the pleasures of outdoor dining. .
Austria, which had reconfigured as early as Boxing Day, relaxed measures on February 8 and relied on millions of tests, especially in schools, to stem the spread of the virus.
Alas, the number of contaminations has since tripled, now exceeding 3,000 per day, half of which in the east of the country affected by these new measures.
In this context, the government of conservative Chancellor Sebastien Kurz has been criticized for its indecision and a management considered chaotic of the pandemic, which has left nearly 9,200 dead in this country of 8.9 million inhabitants.