Published on : 21/03/2020 – 05:02
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New York State and several others on Friday declared a halt to all non-essential activities to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. Nearly 250 deaths have been recorded in the United States.
The states of New York, Illinois and Connecticut followed in California’s lead by ordering residents to stay at home on Friday, March 20. These are the most drastic measures taken so far in the United States in an attempt to stem the epidemic of the new coronavirus. This decision leads to the closure of non-essential businesses and forces residents to remain confined to their homes except to go to grocery stores, pharmacies, gas stations and “other essential businesses”.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has announced plans to shut down non-essential businesses in the next 24 hours. Pennsylvania and Nevada have also announced the cessation of all non-essential activities.
These seven states represent more than 100 million people, including 60 for California and New York.
No general confinement
Donald Trump said earlier on Friday that he is not currently considering a general containment of the entire population in the United States, a measure which he probably will never be necessary. “It was done in California, it was done in New York, those are two hot spots (…) But if you go to the Midwest or anywhere, they watch it all on TV and don’t have the same problems, ”he said.
According to a report from Johns Hopkins University on Friday, more than 19,000 cases of coronavirus have been identified in the United States, which has more than 249 deaths. Health experts believe the number of actual cases could be much higher.
An assistant to Vice President Mike Pence, appointed by Donald Trump to head the “task force” responsible for combating the spread of the pandemic in the United States, has tested positive for the coronavirus. The number two of the American state had not been in “close contact” with this person, specified his spokesman, nor Donald Trump.
With Reuters and AFP
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