Near the collapse of the coronavirus, Rio de Janeir …

Rio de Janeiro, one of the Brazilian cities hardest hit by the coronavirus, decreed this Thursday a night curfew and closure of all types of commercial activity on its beaches for a week. The decision was adopted before the pandemic advanced, which is in its worst phase across the country.

The new restrictions will begin this Friday and will remain in effect until at least the 11, as published in the Official Journal by the Mayor’s Office of Rio. The measures could be extended if the health crisis did not reduce its intensity.

“The permanence of people in the streets, areas and public places of the municipality between 11:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. is prohibited,” said the provision of the mayor’s office, which also suspended trade and the provision of services on the streets. beaches, as well as on the city walks which, under normal conditions, are quite intense.

This restriction includes the temporary closure of mobile outlets, food stalls and craft markets. The intention is to discourage the arrival of bathers, who have taken over the beaches of Rio de Janeiro in recent weeks.

“All the measures have one main objective: to avoid in 2021 the genocide that Rio experienced in 2020. In 2020, twice as many people died in Rio than in Sao Paulo, which has twice the population,” explained the mayor of the city, Eduardo. Paes, at a press conference.

Paes also stated that the adoption of these the restrictions aim to “avoid the total closure” of the capital of Rio de Janeiro.

The decree also limits the opening hours of bars and restaurants, which from tomorrow will be forced to close at 5:00 p.m., and with capacity reduced to 40% of the total.

The city of Rio de Janeiro, which has so far recorded nearly 210,000 cases and 19,000 deaths from covid-19, is experiencing a worrying increase in the number of infections and hospitalizations that threatens to collapse its health system , as has happened in others. points of the country.

Other municipal and regional governments, such as the state of Sao Paulo, which will shut down all of its businesses except essential ones for two weeks, have also chosen to tighten distancing measures to contain the virus.

Since last November, Brazil has been facing a second more virulent and deadly wave that has led the country to record an average of more than a thousand deaths associated with covid-19 in the past 42 days.

The second wave coincides with the emergence of the new variant known as P.1, which according to preliminary studies is more transmissible, infects with a viral load up to ten times higher and is able to elude the antibodies generated. from a previous infection.

Brazil is, along with the United States and India, one of the countries most affected by the coronavirus, with nearly 260,000 deaths and more than 10.7 million cases, according to official data.

The vaccination campaign started in the country in mid-January, but is progressing very slowly, as only 3.5% of a population of 212 million people received the first dose.