Coronavirus claims more lives in Italy

WORST-HIT ZONE : NUMBER OF INFECTED PEOPLE RISING

Residents could face weeks of lockdown in an effort to sit out virus.

Italy reported yesterday its seventh death from the new coronavirus, an 84year old man in the northern Lombardy region, as the number of people contracting the virus continued to mount.

It was the third death in Lombardy, where villages have been put in lockdown and security measures enforced in a bid to stem the spread of the disease, the region’s health department said.

Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said that residents could face weeks of lockdown in an effort to sit out the virus.

The president of the Lombardy region Attilo Fontana said 165 people had tested positive in the region, the worst-hit zone in Italy. The country now has the most confirmed cases in Europe.

“The number is still rising, but we are sure that the measures taken will prevent it spreading further,” Fontana said.

Eleven towns – 10 in Lombardy and one in neighbouring Veneto – are under lockdown, with about 50 000 residents prohibited from leaving.

Regional authorities have ordered gathering spots, such as bars, restaurants and discos to close. The spread of the virus has disrupted high-profile events including Milan Fashion Week and the Venice Carnival, while Serie A football matches have been postponed. Operas have also had to be cancelled at Milan’s famed La Scala. Churches are being kept open but all masses have been cancelled.

The stock market in Milan was down more than 4.0% yesterday in a broad-based selloff.

Most of the cases in Italy are in Lombardy and can be traced back to a 38-year-old man whom authorities have called “patient one”.