Uruguay protects borders due to growing Covid-19 cases

Uruguay will suspend entry into the country from December 21 to January 10, due to the increase in cases and deaths from the coronavirus, announced this evening by President Luis Lacalle Pou.

“We have taken the decision to suspend entry into the country between December 21 and January 10,” the president said at a press conference.

After a meeting with his Council of Ministers, the president also announced restrictions and changes in the capacity of buses and shops, as well as the suspension of public performances, among other preventive measures, reported the Sputnik agency and the Montevideo newspaper. El País.

Uruguay is in its first wave of coronavirus infections, said earlier today, researcher Rafael Radi, of the Honorary Scientific Advisory Group (GACH) who works with the government, at a time when the country has more than 200 prisoners in quarantine since epidemics in prisons and today records, for the first time, the death of four people in one day, with which it has exceeded 100 deaths.

“In Uruguay, it has already gone from a stage of case-only outbreaks to community circulation in the metropolitan area and is in its first wave of infections. We had not yet had a first wave due to the ‘package of measures that had been developed, “he said. Radio at a press conference.

Since the end of November, Uruguay has seen an exponential increase in daily cases, assets and deaths, forcing the executive to push forward the announcement of new measures, which would take place no later than tomorrow, the government said. Press Agency. Sputnik.

There are currently 3,649 active cases, of which 44 are in intensive care and none in intermediate care.

Of the total confirmed positive cases, 860 correspond to health personnel; 630 of them have already recovered, 227 are suffering from the disease and three have died.

Brazil

A few days ago, the new Minister of Tourism of Brazil, Gilson Machado, assured this Thursday that the tourism sector “will not support” the measures against the coronavirus which again involve closures and quarantines, he therefore asked to local authorities to exclude This possibility.

“I take this opportunity to appeal to municipal and state authorities so that they do not decide to close tourism-related activities, especially during the Christmas period”, he asked.

“We will not have an economic recovery,” Machado assured in a note published after his official confirmation to the post the day after the dismissal of the former head of this portfolio, Marcelo Álvaro Antonio, amid the accusations of the latter on a alleged attempt at the first. to fire him from the ministry.

“We will have the best possible economic recovery thanks to tourism. That is why I am making this appeal, we can no longer close the sector,” insisted Machado, who in turn defended the work of the Brazilian government and his ministry in the fight against COVID -19.

“The tourism ministry has been an example of how to educate the whole country on best health practices to prevent the spread of the coronavirus,” he said, while the government “did its homework”, approving measures that “they protected the jobs of Brazilians.”