People need to stay in for Easter, the government in Greece said, as tight restrictions will remain throughout this period, with the traditional outings to rural communities now ruled out by authorities.
The Greek health ministry’s coronavirus spokesman, epidemiologist Sotiris Tsiodras, said the lockdown was working and the country was charting an opposite course than the tragic one in Italy, with hundreds of deaths on a daily basis and more being placed on a respirator.
Tsiodras noted that Greece has now passed that scenario and is moving towards a much better one as the numbers indicate, with 1061 confirmed cases over the past 32 days.
He stressed the direct connection between social distancing and the number of new cases, making clear that the more everyone adheres to the measures, the better the result will be, for the country as a whole.
Greece warned its citizens that any relaxation of restrictions will lead to a stronger return of the virus and a new wave of cases, this is why any measures must remain for a long time. ‘Otherwise the virus will have its revenge’, said civil protection deputy minister Nikos Hardalias.
