Italy calls in military to enforce lockdown as 627 die in one day
   Date :22-Mar-2020

lockdown Italy _1 &n
 
 
ROME (Italy) :
 
ITALY called in the military to enforce the lockdown on Friday as officials announced 627 new deaths in 24 hours, the largest single-day toll in any country since the coronavirus outbreak began. Desperate scenes have unfolded in the north of the country, particularly the hard-hit Lombardy region where infections first exploded last month, as hospitals struggle to treat thousands of cases, CNN reported. Chinese medical experts helping Italy deal with the crisis have said restrictions imposed in the Lombardy region are “not strict enough” to contain the spread.
 
The request to use the military for a lockdown has been accepted by the Government said Attilio Fontana, the President of the Lombardy region. “The request to use the army has been accepted... and 114 soldiers will be on the ground throughout Lombardy... it is still too little, but it is positive,” Fontana said. “Unfortunately we are not seeing a change of trend in the numbers, which are rising.” The soldiers were deployed in the Lombardy region until now were just ensuring general security in the streets. More than 4,000 people have now died from the disease in Italy, the country’s civil protection agency said on Friday. This is more than any other nation, and nearly 6,000 new infections were confirmed in the past day, bringing the total to more than 47,000 cases.
 
Meanwhile, Italy which saw its COVID-19 death toll on Thursday overtake that of China where the disease was first reported, on Friday reported another huge spike in fatalities which have now crossed 4,000. In the last 24 hours, the country recorded 627 deaths - the largest number so far - taking its total to 4,032, as per officials, the BBC reported. It has been the worst week so far for Italy, which recorded 300 plus deaths for three days running since Sunday, 400 plus for the next two days and now, crossed 600. The number of confirmed cases in the virus-ravaged country have risen to 47,021, despite severe restrictions on people’s movement. The country’s health service is under huge strain. Meanwhile, Spain became the fourth country after Italy, China and Iran to record over 1,000 coronavirus deaths far. Another 235 fatalities in the last 24 hours have taken its total to 1,002, the BBC said.