Nearly one billion people around the world were confined to their homes on Sunday, as the coronavirus death toll crossed 13,000 and factories were shut in worst-hit Italy after another single-day fatalities record.
The raging pandemic has forced lockdowns in 35 countries across the globe, disrupting lives, travel, and businesses as governments scramble to shut borders and unleash hundreds of billions in emergency measures to avoid a widespread virus-fueled economic meltdown.
More than 300,000 infections have been confirmed worldwide, with the situation increasingly grim in Italy where the death toll spiked to more than 4,800 – over a third of the global total.
Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced a closure of all non-essential factories in a late-night TV address on Saturday.
The Mediterranean nation of 60 million is now the epicenter of the disease, which first emerged in central China late last year before marching out to the rest of the world.
Italy has now reported more deaths than mainland China and third-placed Iran combined, and it has a death rate of 8.6 percent among confirmed COVID-19 infections – significantly higher than in most other countries.
Across the Atlantic, more than a third of Americans were adjusting to life in various phases of lockdown, including in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles – the three biggest US cities. Other parts of the United States are expected to ramp up restrictions as well.
“This is a time of shared national sacrifice, but also a time to treasure our loved ones,” US President Donald Trump said. “We’re going to have a great victory.”
The pandemic has bludgeoned global stock markets, and the United States – the world’s biggest economy – is preparing a huge emergency stimulus package that could top $1 trillion.
More US lockdowns seen
Millions have been ordered to stay home in the United States.
New Jersey on Saturday followed several states in telling residents to stay indoors. Gov. Phil Murphy ordered all non-essential businesses to close their physical stores from 9:00 p.m.
And in neighboring New York, Governor Andrew Cuomo warned that the disruption is likely to last for months, not weeks.
“I don’t think it’s possible in a city of this size for people to maintain it for much longer than three weeks before they start losing it,” Yona Corn, a 35-year-old singer, said.
“I think there’s going to be a big mental health crisis. I worry about what’s going to happen to people.”
Congress members are hoping to agree on a $1 trillion emergency aid package as fears grow about the economic fallout from the crisis.
The US Food and Drug Administration also approved the first coronavirus test that can be conducted entirely at the point of care for a patient – and deliver results in 45 minutes.
Vice President Mike Pence and his wife tested negative for the coronavirus, his press secretary tweeted Saturday. The couple had taken the test after one of Pence’s staffers contracted the illness.
The drastic confinement measures follow the example of China, where the lockdown of Hubei province appears to have paid off. Wuhan, Hubei’s capital, is where the virus was first detected.
Europeans stay home
France, Italy, Spain and other European countries have ordered people to stay at home, threatening fines in some cases, while Australia on Sunday told citizens to cancel domestic travel plans.
Britain has told pubs, restaurants,and theaters to close and warned citizens to stop panic-buying.
And India went into lockdown on Sunday with a one-day nationwide “self-imposed curfew.”
While the elderly and those with pre-existing medical conditions are the hardest hit by the virus, the WHO has warned that young people are also vulnerable.
Accurate figures elusive
Accurate COVID-19 figures are difficult to reach because many of the victims suffered from other illnesses, and infection rates are uncertain because of a lack of testing in many countries.
The coronavirus has infected more than 1,000 across Africa too, where healthcare systems are limited and social distancing measures – like the ones being adopted in North America and Europe – are difficult in crowded cities.
The Middle East also remains on high alert, where Iran – which suffered a major outbreak – reporting 123 new deaths on Saturday. But the Islamic Republic has refused to join the rest of the world in imposing heavy restrictions.
US works on economic rescue plan
US Senate leader Mitch McConnell said Saturday that Republicans and Democrats were “very close” to reaching a deal on an economic rescue plan estimated worth well over $1 trillion as the coronavirus pandemic continued to pummel the US economy.
Lawmakers were in intense discussions on a deal that could inject massive funds into US businesses and the pockets of millions of workers laid off as the COVID-19 virus continues to spread.
China reports new infections
China reported 46 new coronavirus infections on Sunday, including its first case of local transmission in four days.
While the number of virus cases has been falling over the past few weeks in China, there has been growing concern around imported cases as countries around the world step up their fight against the pandemic.
An estimated 900 million people in 35 countries are now confined to their homes, including 600 million cooped in due to government lockdown orders.
While about 56 million people in China’s central Hubei province had been locked down since late January, authorities have begun to ease travel restrictions as the number of fresh infections in Hubei dropped to zero.
E-commerce thrives
The coronavirus pandemic has sent stock markets into freefall and industries to the wall, however many firms enabling more private, online and tech-based living are emerging as potential winners.
As hundreds of millions of people worldwide are forced to stay in their homes and not travel abroad, the businesses that are helping them to adapt could lead to long-term changes in the economy.
Large online retailers have seen a surge in orders as self-isolating or home-working consumers turn to their massive distribution and delivery networks to provide daily essentials.
Air quality improves with lockdowns
Air quality is improving in countries under coronavirus quarantines, experts say, but it is far too early to speak of long-term change.
Images by the US space agency NASA are clear, in February the concentration of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) fell dramatically in Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, passing from an indicator that was red/orange to blue.
NO2 is mainly produced by vehicles, industrial sites and thermal power stations.
As China moves past the peak of its crisis, however, recent images by the European Space Agency (ESA) show a resurgence in NO2 emissions.
