France and Germany thrust into lockdown as second COVID-19 wave sweeps Europe

By Andreas Rinke and Sudip Kar-Gupta

 

People wearing face masks walk by an empty table of a cafe as the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak continues, in front of the Brandenburg Gate, in Berlin, Germany October 28, 2020. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch

 

BERLIN/PARIS (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel ordered their countries back into lockdown on Wednesday, as a massive second wave of coronavirus infections threatened to overwhelm Europe before the winter.

 

World stock markets went into a dive in response to the news that Europe's biggest economies were imposing nationwide restrictions almost as severe as the ones that drove the global economy this year into its deepest recession in generations.

 

"The virus is circulating at a speed that not even the most pessimistic forecasts had anticipated," Macron said in a televised address. "Like all our neighbours, we are submerged by the sudden acceleration of the virus."

 

"We are all in the same position: overrun by a second wave which we know will be harder, more deadly than the first," he said. "I have decided that we need to return to the lockdown which stopped the virus."

 

Under the new French measures which come into force on Friday, people will be required to stay in their homes except to buy essential goods, seek medical attention, or exercise for up to one hour a day. They will be permitted to go to work if their employer deems it impossible for them to do the job from home. Schools will stay open.

 

As in the darkest days of spring, anyone leaving their home in France will now have to carry a document justifying being outside, which can be checked by police.

 

Empty tables of a restaurant are pictured as the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak continues, in Berlin's Mitte district, Germany October 28, 2020. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch

 

Germany will shut bars, restaurants and theatres from Nov. 2-30 under measures agreed between Merkel and heads of regional governments. Schools will stay open, and shops will be allowed to operate with strict limits on access.

 

"We need to take action now," Merkel said. "Our health system can still cope with this challenge today, but at this speed of infections it will reach the limits of its capacity within weeks."

 

Her finance minister, Olaf Scholz, posted on Twitter: "November will be a month of truth. The increasing numbers of infections are forcing us to take tough countermeasures in order to break the second wave."

 

France has surged above 36,000 new cases a day. Germany, which was less hard-hit than its European neighbours early this year, has seen an exponential rise in cases.

 

In the United States, a new wave of infections has been setting records with six days to go until Election Day. President Donald Trump has played down the virus and shows no sign of cancelling public rallies where his supporters often refuse to wear masks or keep a safe distance.

 

People watch French President Emmanuel Macron on a TV screen in a restaurant in Paris as the French leader addresses the nation about the state of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in France, October 28, 2020. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier

 

European stock markets closed at their lowest levels since late May on Wednesday. In the United States, the S&P 500 was down 3%.

In an effort to blunt the economic impact, Germany will set aside up to 10 billion euros ($12 billion) to partly reimburse companies for lost sales. Italy has set aside more than 5 billion euros.

 

IF WE WAIT IT WILL BE TOO LATE

While leaders have been desperate to avoid the crippling cost of lockdowns, the new restrictions reflect alarm at the galloping pace of the pandemic from Spain, France and Germany to Russia, Poland and Bulgaria.

 

"If we wait until the intensive care units are full, it will be too late," said German Health Minister Jens Spahn, whose country already has taken in patients from its neighbour the Netherlands, where hospitals have reached their limits.

 

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Tatiana Golikova said on Wednesday that hospital beds were at 90% of capacity in 16 regions of the country, while officials have warned that even well-equipped health systems like those in France and Switzerland could reach breaking point within days.

 

Hopes that new treatments might curb the spread were dented when the head of Britain's vaccine procurement task force said that a fully effective vaccine may never be developed and that early versions were likely to be imperfect.

 

The latest figures from the World Health Organization on Tuesday showed Europe reported 1.3 million new cases in the past seven days, nearly half the 2.9 million reported worldwide, with over 11,700 deaths, a 37% jump over the previous week.

 

French President Emmanuel Macron said Europe should be more coordinated in its approach to combating COVID-19, which has started to engulf the region in its second wave.

 

So far, more than 42 million cases and more than 1.1 million deaths have been recorded worldwide from the virus, which was first identified in the central Chinese city of Wuhan at the end of last year.

 

Governments across Europe have been under fire for a lack of coordination and for failing to use a lull in cases over the summer to bolster defences, leaving hospitals unprepared.

 

Since the weekend, police and protesters have clashed repeatedly in Italian cities from Naples to Turin. Restaurant owners and business groups have been critical.

 

"At 6 p.m. public transport is often crowded. You take the risk because you have to get to work. You wear a mask, you take hand gel with you," Elio Venafro said after getting off a bus in central Rome on Wednesday. "It's the new normal."

 

(Reporting by Reuters bureaux; Writing by Peter Graff and James Mackenzie; Editing by Nick Macfie, Hugh Lawson and Howard Goller)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-10-29

 

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1 hour ago, webfact said:

"We are all in the same position: overrun by a second wave which we know will be harder, more deadly than the first," he said. "I have decided that we need to return to the lockdown which stopped the virus."

no, neither him nor anyone else know its going to be harder or more deadly, nothing indicate it whatsoever

That’s a tough call imo it takes a courageous tough person to make it knowing the financial hardships it’s going to cause........good luck!!!

I wonder who the new "Experts" are?

https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/professor-lockdown-modeler-resigns-in-disgrace

1 minute ago, Tug said:

That’s a tough call imo it takes a courageous tough person to make it knowing the financial hardships it’s going to cause........good luck!!!

Not really, most politicians are old and paying all the debt back and worrying about unemployment in the future is not going to bother them in the slightest when leaving office.  In years to come the politicians will not be seen as saviours in my opinion - more economical terrorists.

"The virus is circulating at a speed that not even the most pessimistic forecasts had anticipated,"

 

And China seems to be fine? 

Going vertical. France alone is now beyond the entire EU first peak. Belgium, not shown, is off the charts.

 

2 minutes ago, rabas said:

Going vertical. France alone is now beyond the entire EU first peak. Belgium, not shown, is off the charts.

 

What is a "Case" again? What's the definition of a Case? A case does not necessarily always mean illness.

Edited October 28, 20205 yr by Tounge Thaied
spelling and content

19 minutes ago, Tounge Thaied said:

What is a "Case" again? What's the definition of a Case? A case does not necessarily always mean illness.

Check out EU hospitalization rates and get back to us.

 

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/10/22/world/europe/europe-hospitals-covid.html

 

Edited October 28, 20205 yr by rabas

2 hours ago, webfact said:

anyone leaving their home in France will now have to carry a document justifying being outside, which can be checked by police.

Holy poop .......... France imprisons it's population.

53 minutes ago, scammed said:

no, neither him nor anyone else know its going to be harder or more deadly, nothing indicate it whatsoever

And, of course, you know better.....

I am afraid it will be a very quiet high season here this year. And it is not only up to Thailand. 

10 minutes ago, Tounge Thaied said:

What is a "Case" again? What's the definition of a Case? A case does not necessarily always mean illness.

A case is someone who will be able to transmit the disease to others.  Whether they are sick or not, they can infect someone who will get sick.

 

21 minutes ago, teacherclaire said:

"The virus is circulating at a speed that not even the most pessimistic forecasts had anticipated,"

 

And China seems to be fine? 

They have the instruction manual, which they refuse to release.

It's almost surreal living in Thailand, where life (other than wearing masks and the lack of tourists) is completely normal. One almost has to pinch oneself to remember there's a pandemic.

Edited October 29, 20205 yr by Pattaya Spotter

2 hours ago, webfact said:

 

 

 

Hopes that new treatments might curb the spread were dented when the head of Britain's vaccine procurement task force said that a fully effective vaccine may never be developed and that early versions were likely to be imperfect.

 

 

- Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking COVID-19 updates

 

 

So expect an eternal cycle of lockdowns and easing of restrictions, masks and isolation. Ridiculous.

1 hour ago, teacherclaire said:

"The virus is circulating at a speed that not even the most pessimistic forecasts had anticipated,"

 

And China seems to be fine? 

When a case of infection is found in China, the entire family and neighbors are immediately forced into quarantine. If there are multiple cases in an area, military units come in and block the roads in and out. A very different and forceful response.

Edited October 29, 20205 yr by tonray

1 hour ago, Oldie said:

I am afraid it will be a very quiet high season here this year. And it is not only up to Thailand. 

I agree. And while Thailand has been doing great in handling the Pandemic, the Government is making a dreadful error when they refuse to accept the fact that there can't be any international tourism for at least another year.

 

When they are pretending to take measures to restart tourism they are only dodging their main duty, which right now is to take care of the masses the Pandemic has put out of work.

55 minutes ago, Boomer6969 said:

When they are pretending to take measures to restart tourism they are only dodging their main duty, which right now is to take care of the masses the Pandemic has put out of work.

Would suggest the Government's first job is to keep the population alive, something they are doing very well unlike the West who’s Governments are failing badly according to the numbers of dead piling up in mortuaries

2 hours ago, Tounge Thaied said:

What is a "Case" again? What's the definition of a Case? A case does not necessarily always mean illness.

A case definition is a set of standard criteria for classifying whether a person has a particular disease, syndrome, or other health condition. Some case definitions, particularly those used for national surveillance, have been developed and adopted as national standards that ensure comparability.

3 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Not really, most politicians are old and paying all the debt back and worrying about unemployment in the future is not going to bother them in the slightest when leaving office.  In years to come the politicians will not be seen as saviours in my opinion - more economical terrorists.

And don't forget the lost educational opportunity of kids loosing a year or more of education...a generation of academically and socially stunted kids (so more low functioning adults in future requiring more government support (taxpayers support) to get through life.

The lockdown obviously didn't work the first time, so let's go for a second round!

 

Even the WHO has said that lockdowns were to be avoided, but never mind because, in the end, the real objective is to establish a new feudal system, and the sheeple are quickly adapting to their new status of serfs.

 

Good riddance...

 

 

Troll post removed.

 

Wow, this is going to hit the French and German economies extremely hard. Not good news for the EU, given those 2 'states' are by far the blocs largest financial contributors now that Britain has rejected them.

 

I'd be signing that FTA with the UK pronto if I was them. 

11 minutes ago, JonnyF said:

Wow, this is going to hit the French and German economies extremely hard. Not good news for the EU, given those 2 'states' are by far the blocs largest financial contributors now that Britain has rejected them.

 

I'd be signing that FTA with the UK pronto if I was them. 

IMO, the right time for Germany to leave the European Union.

 

  They can't pay for ten countries, can they?

23 minutes ago, teacherclaire said:

IMO, the right time for Germany to leave the European Union.

 

  They can't pay for ten countries, can they?

They make tons of money thanks to their stupid neighbors. 

 

As far as the German economy is concerned, the euro is grossly undervalued, which gives a fantastic boost to its exports. 

 

Meanwhile the euros is grossly overvalued for most of the other economies of the union. 

 

It is the latter (Spain, Italy...) who should leave. 

 

Germany is not paying anything for the other members... these are just entries to balance the ECBs book, without any real transfer of money from one state to another. 

Mocking President Trump and the U.S. virus response was fun while it lasted...

 

Gloom settles over Europe as days darken and coronavirus surges

 

As new coronavirus infections surge again in Europe, breaking daily records, the mood is growing dark on the continent...Smugness in Europe about having bested the Americans under President Trump is fading with the record-breaking daily counts in a dozen countries.  https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/covid-europe-second-wave-lockdowns/2020/10/28/e0f2d9b2-1863-11eb-8bda-814ca56e138b_story.html

Edited October 29, 20205 yr by Pattaya Spotter

15 minutes ago, Pattaya Spotter said:

Mocking President Trump and the U.S. virus response was fun while it lasted...

 

Gloom settles over Europe as days darken and coronavirus surges

 

As new coronavirus infections surge again in Europe, breaking daily records, the mood is growing dark on the continent...Smugness in Europe about having bested the Americans under President Trump is fading with the record-breaking daily counts in a dozen countries.  https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/covid-europe-second-wave-lockdowns/2020/10/28/e0f2d9b2-1863-11eb-8bda-814ca56e138b_story.html

"The Darkest Winter" is upon us.

7 hours ago, Tounge Thaied said:

I wonder who the new "Experts" are?

 The german old and new expert on this is Christian Drosten, he is a key member who developed the not very reliable PCR test and promotes it for using to governments. He is also the main adviser to the german government and pro scaremongering.

 

Others might think that is a conflict of interest, but not for authority loving germans.

 

I just hope sooner or later more countries will look towards Sweden, because many people feel their life is stolen by the governments.

 

The man made Fallout is now far worse then the Fallout from the virus.

1 hour ago, Pattaya Spotter said:

Mocking President Trump and the U.S. virus response was fun while it lasted...

 

Gloom settles over Europe as days darken and coronavirus surges

 

As new coronavirus infections surge again in Europe, breaking daily records, the mood is growing dark on the continent...Smugness in Europe about having bested the Americans under President Trump is fading with the record-breaking daily counts in a dozen countries.  https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/covid-europe-second-wave-lockdowns/2020/10/28/e0f2d9b2-1863-11eb-8bda-814ca56e138b_story.html

Trump bungled the response to the first wave (compared to Europe). This is fact. It cannot be caught up.

 

This is now the second wave, so the issue is how they respond to it.  It will surge a bit later (a few weeks) in the US, so Trump will still have to opportunity to show if He's able to do better.