Coronavirus cases in Spain rocket 362 in a day as fears grow country is the new Italy
SPAIN’s confirmed cases of coronavirus have risen by 362 in just a day as officials fear an Italy-like outbreak in the country.
By BILL MCLOUGHLIN
Express.co.uk
Mon, Mar 9, 2020
The number of cases now stands at 1,036, while the Spanish government has announced the launch of an emergency plan to deal with the virus. Ministers will discuss urgent measures to stop the spread of the contagion after the country saw the death toll soar to 26, three times what it was before the weekend.
All those who have died in the country to date were aged over 60, with many living in nursing homes.
The government’s representative and health minister for the badly-affected Basque region, Sara Alba said the situation in the country called for “exceptional measures and robust action”.
Police have also been deployed to “guarantee the correct observance of home isolation”.
The country has also cancelled events in closed spaces and urged the public to remain at home if they believe they have picked up the virus.
On Saturday, police were deployed to lock down a neighbourhood in the city of Haro, following the outbreak of cases in the famous La Rioja region.
According to the health authorities 60 cases of the virus originated from a single funeral in the city of Vitoria-Gastiez.
Ms Alba said: “Following the principle of precaution that the department is obliged to abide by, we need to take exceptional measures designed to stop the transmission of the illness between citizens who are not following the advice of the health authorities.
“We are talking to the national health ministry about the situation in Haro and together we’ve agreed the measures we have taken up to now and are prepared for future scenarios.”
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