On Friday, officials announced 27 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Lombardy and two in Veneto.
The coronavirus outbreak began in china and has affected 78,000 people worldwide. This past Friday, Italy became the first European country to report the death of one of its own nationals from the coronavirus.
According to ANSA news agency, a female from Lombardy has died. She passed away hours after a 78-year-old man died overnight near Padua, the region several hours away from Lombardy.
None of the affected individuals were in China. However, the first affected man who is currently in intensive care felt sick after meeting with a friend who was recently in China.
Health Minister Roberto Speranza told reporters, “We had prepared a plan in recent days because it was clear what has happened could somehow happen.” Italy is asking 10 small towns south of Milan containing around 50,000 people to stay indoors. The Italian Government has announced that they will be banning all pubic events, shutting down schools, sports venues, and offices.
In totality, COVID-19 is now confirmed to have infected 52 people across Italy: 39 in Lombardy, 12 in Veneto, 1 in Turin and a suspected case in Umbria.
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- Main Image: Photo by Lucrezia Carnelos on Unsplash
