Greece: Authorities to impose nationwide curfew November 13 /update 39

Event

Authorities in Greece will impose a nighttime curfew nationwide from Friday, November 13, in a tightening of measures in place to control the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The curfew will be in place between 21:00 and 05:00 (local time). During these hours movement will only be permitted for work, health reasons, or to walk pets close to home. A nationwide lockdown has already been introduced between Saturday, November 7, and November 30. Grocery shopping and exercise in groups of up to two are among reasons that people can leave the home under the lockdown; however, prior to leaving the house for essential reasons, individuals must obtain approval using the government SMS system on 13033 or have a certificate from their employer. High schools have switched to distance learning during the lockdown and nonessential retail businesses must close. The use of face masks both indoors and outside remains mandatory.

As of Wednesday, November 11, there have been 63,321 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Greece with 909 associated deaths. Further international spread of the virus is to be expected in the near term.

Context

The first case of COVID-19 was reported on December 31 and the source of the outbreak has been linked to a wet market in Wuhan (Hubei province, China). Since then, human-to-human transmission of the virus has been confirmed.

Cases of the virus have been confirmed in numerous countries and territories worldwide. On March 11, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the global outbreak a pandemic. Virus-screening and quarantining measures are being implemented at airports worldwide, as well as extensive travel restrictions.

The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, dry cough, and tiredness. Some patients may experience other symptoms such as body pains, nasal congestion, headache, conjunctivitis, sore throat, diarrhea, loss of taste or smell or a rash on skin or discoloration of fingers or toes. These symptoms (in most cases mild) appear gradually. Generally, most patients (around 80 percent) recover from the disease without being hospitalized.

Advice

Measures adopted by local authorities evolve quickly and are usually effective immediately. Depending on the evolution of the outbreak in other countries, authorities are likely to modify, at very short notice, the list of countries whose travelers are subject to border control measures or entry restrictions upon their arrival to the territory in question. It is advised to postpone nonessential travel due to the risk that travelers may be refused entry or be subject to quarantine upon their arrival or during their stay.

To reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission, travelers are advised to abide by the following measures: