Coronavirus: Italy On Lockdown, Quarantines 16 Million People, Bans Weddings And Funerals

Italy has today quarantined 16 MILLION people in drastic measures to stop the deadly spread of coronavirus.

More than a quarter of the country’s population has been put into lockdown, including cities Venice and Milan, with weddings and funerals banned, UK Sun reports.

The unprecedented measures come as more than 5,800 cases of the deadly bug have been confirmed in Italy – with more than 1,200 cases diagnosed in just 24 hours.

Italy has been the worst country in Europe to have been hit by the outbreak, with 233 people dying after testing positive.

The extreme measures will remain in place for at least four weeks until April 3.

Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte signed the decree in the early hours of this morning, which will effectively lockdown 16 million residents in Lombardy and northern Italy.

He said: “We want to guarantee the health of our citizens. We understand that these measures will impose sacrifices, sometimes small and sometimes very big.

“But this is a time where we must take responsibility for ourselves.”

He added: “We have to limit the spread of the virus and prevent our hospitals from being overwhelmed.”

The new measures say people should not enter or leave Lombardy, Italy’s richest region, as well as 14 provinces in four other regions, including the cities of Venice, Modena, Parma, Piacenza, Reggio Emilia and Rimini.

The measures include cancelled sporting events and school classes, with religious ceremonies also suspended.

Restaurants and cafes can open between 6am and 6pm but customers must sit at least a metre apart.

Those in the affected regions have been told to stay home as much as possible – facing three months jail if they break quarantine.

The decree applies to: Lombardy (the whole region) and the 14 provinces of: Modena Parma Piacenza Reggio Emilia Rimini Pesaro e Urbino Venezia Padova Treviso Asti Alessandria Novara Verbano-Cusio-Ossola Vercelli.

Deaths due to the infectious virus have risen in Italy, by 36 to 233, while the number of patients in intensive care climbed to 567, up 23 per cent from the day before. Of the 5,883 Italians originally infected, 589 have fully recovered.

Among those affected is the leader of Italy’s co-ruling Democratic Party Nicola Zingaretti, who tested positive for the virus.

Meanwhile, there are currently more than 106,000 cases of the bug globally, with more than 3,590 deaths.