New York tries to stem the spread of the coronavirus

New York State hand sanitizer gel made by … prisoners. New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo on Monday presented one of his solutions to try to stem the spread of the coronavirus. “It is much cheaper for us to manufacture it ourselves”, he explained, citing a cost price of “6 dollars a gallon” (less than 1.50 euros per liter).

With a production capacity of nearly 400,000 liters per week, the gel will be distributed to schools as well as to employees of the state services and of the New York public transport network. If it won’t be not available for individuals , the State has set up a telephone number to denounce those who take advantage of shortages of hydroalcoholic gel to charge abusive prices.

The contaminated airport manager

While New York State established a state of emergency on Saturday, the number of contaminations has climbed in recent days, with 142 cases identified on Monday morning, a number which is expected to jump further in the coming weeks. Among the latest cases is the director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates within 40 kilometers of the Statue of Liberty all three New York airports, tunnels and bridges, buses and port terminals …

For the moment, the virus is mainly concentrated about twenty kilometers northeast of Manhattan, around the city of New Rochelle, with 98 cases of contamination. New York City had just 19 cases Monday morning, but that number is expected to rise with the multiplication of available tests .

Fewer fast trains to Washington

The State and the City of New York are currently pleading in favor of preventive and ad hoc containment measures. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio asked people passing through the city “To adjust their habits to stem the spread of the virus where they can”, for example by walking or cycling rather than taking the metro during rush hour.

The Amtrak railroad company, for its part, canceled three trains between New York and Washington. Not to prevent the virus from spreading, but because it has reduced demand for its faster and more expensive Acela trains.

Preventive and ad hoc measures

While a cluster of schools near New Rochelle closed institutions for ten days, Columbia University, north Manhattan, suspended classes for two days while awaiting test results on one person. She will then organize distance learning courses until the end of the week, which coincides with the start of spring break for the students.

Students from New York State and New York City universities (SUNY and CUNY) in five at-risk countries (China, Iran, South Korea, Japan and Italy) are also being repatriated to the States. -United and confined for two weeks on their return, said the governor. And trips to these at-risk countries have been canceled.

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