UK overtakes Italy with most official virus deaths in Europe

May 05, 2020

LONDON (AP) — Britain now has Europe's highest official coronavirus death toll after the latest round of daily figures Tuesday showed it overtaking Italy. Only the United States has recorded more virus-related deaths.

The British government said another 693 people died in hospitals, nursing homes and other settings after testing positive for COVID-19, taking the total to 29,427 — above Italy's 29,315. Though the U.K.'s coronavirus-related death toll, when measured on a seven-day rolling basis, has been falling consistently for the past three to four weeks, the country is around two weeks behind Italy in terms of the pandemic. The tallies are likely underestimates because they do not include suspected coronavirus deaths.

Taking into account countries’ populations, the U.K.’s per capita death rate is below those in Italy, Spain and Belgium. And the U.S. is below them all even though it has the highest number of registered COVID-19 deaths with more than 70,000.

British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said the number of deaths was a “massive tragedy,” but added that it was too soon to make reliable international comparisons, partly because of apparent differences in the way countries report deaths.

"I don’t think we’ll get a real verdict on how well countries have done until the pandemic is over and particularly until we’ve got comprehensive international data on all-cause mortality,” he said. There is a growing consensus among scientists and statisticians that the best way to assess deaths eventually will be to measure how many more people died than would normally have been expected to die in any particular year.

Professor David Spiegelhalter, a leading statistician at the University of Cambridge, said one certain thing is that all the official death numbers are “substantial underestimates” of those dying directly from the virus and those who died as a result of the epidemic and the measures taken in response.

“I think we can safely say that none of these countries are doing well, but this is not (the) Eurovision (Song Contest) and it is pointless to try and rank them,” he said. “I believe the only sensible comparison is by looking at excess all-cause mortality, adjusted for the age distribution of the country,” he said. "And even then it will be very difficult to ascribe the reasons for any differences.”

Regardless of how deaths are recorded, the trends in most of the virus-related numbers in the U.K., such as the number of people requiring hospitalization with coronavirus, are heading in the right direction — but not enough to prompt the government to ease the lockdown, in place since March 23, when it is reviewed on Thursday.

Government advisers have voiced worries about the number of new cases still being recorded. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who has recovered from COVID-19 himself, has warned of a second spike in the epidemic and that the U.K. is at the moment of “maximum risk.”

The government has come under increasing criticism over the past couple of weeks for being too slow in putting the country into lockdown, in testing for the virus and in getting critical protective gear for medical workers.

The hope in government circles is that it can pivot to a new approach in keeping a lid on the virus until a vaccine is found — more than 100,000 people can be tested each day. A pilot program started Tuesday on the Isle of Wight, off England’s south coast, with a mobile phone app that authorities hope will help contain the outbreak once the lockdown restrictions are eased. The government wants the app, which warns people who have been near an infected individual, to be rolled out across the country this month.

Angela McLean, the government’s deputy chief scientific adviser, said the U.K. was now trying to emulate the success of the contact tracing policy adopted by South Korea. “I think they are a fine example to us and we should try to emulate what they have achieved," she said.

Cycle power: Bikes emerge as a post-lockdown commuter option

May 03, 2020

MADRID (AP) — Halfway through his 30-minute bike ride to work, police ordered Juan Pasamar to dismount, accusing him of breaking Spain’s coronavirus lockdown rules by exercising in public. The officers were not buying his explanation he was commuting to his job outside of Zaragoza, the northern city where he lives.

“You have a car, don’t you? Why don’t you use that?” he said he was asked. Pasamar eventually had to hire a lawyer to convince police that the government had not banned cycling during the lockdown. As countries seek to get their economies back on track after the devastation wrought by the coronavirus pandemic, bicycle use is being encouraged as a way to avoid unsafe crowding on trains and buses.

Cycling activists from Germany to Peru are trying to use the moment to get more bike lanes, or widen existing ones, even if it's just a temporary measure to make space for commuters on two wheels. The transition to more bike-friendly urban environments “is necessary if we want our cities to work,” said Morton Kabell, who co-chairs the European Cyclists’ Federation.

“A lot of people will be afraid of going on public transportation, but we have to get back to work someday. Very few of our cities can handle more car traffic,” he said. In addition to bike lanes separated by curbs, Kabell backs subsidizing electric bicycles, which could encourage commuters who have longer or hilly journeys.

The benchmarks are Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, where half of the daily commuters are cyclists, and the Netherlands, with its vast network of bike lanes. Still, countries around the world are catching up at different speeds.

The French government asked cycling activist Pierre Serne to draw up a plan for when its lockdown ends May 11. His recommendations, including bicycle lanes separated from other vehicles at an estimated cost of 50,000 euros per kilometer ($32,000 per mile), have been submitted to the Transportation Ministry.

For now, France has said it will subsidize riders up to 50 euros (nearly $55) for repairs so the French can get their bicycles ready for post-lockdown rides. In Berlin, the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg council simply painted yellow lines on the some roads to take space from car lanes. This bike infrastructure builds on what is called “tactical urbanism” — low-cost changes that are technically simple and reversible, and they can make an immediate difference.

Similar initiatives are popping up elsewhere. Officials in Lima, Peru; Barcelona, Spain; and Milan, Italy, are speeding up plans to expand bike paths or take space from cars or current parking sites. In Bogota, where bicycles are used mostly by Colombia's blue-collar workers, Mayor Claudia López has urged everybody returning to work this week to cycle instead of using public transportation, which is now operating at 35% of capacity.

With many U.S. nonessential businesses closed, there is little point now in cycling that isn't recreational. But cities like Oakland, San Francisco and New York are closing some streets to traffic to allow room for runners and cyclists.

Pedro Díaz, a member of Pedalibre, a Madrid cycling club, sees this as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take over space from cars and resist giving it back when the pandemic ends. “If we wait for proper infrastructure for bicycle lanes, we’ll need a municipal plan, which will take at least four years to be designed and get approved,” Díaz said. “This way, it’s just a matter of putting a fence and stopping cars from using a lane. Then it will be a fait accompli.”

If arguing for environmentally friendly transportation was a key factor for activists before, the economic fallout from the virus is adding momentum, said Laura Vergara, head of Spain’s ConBici advocacy group.

With tourism accounting for nearly 15% of the GDP in Spain, outdoor vacations — whether on two wheels or not, but away from crowded beaches and resorts — could keep the industry afloat, she said. “In Australia, bicycle sales have already skyrocketed,” Vergara said. “Why couldn’t that happen here?”

Despite having sunny days the year round, car-loving Spaniards seem to be decades behind northern Europe when it comes to commuting by bicycle. Environment Minister Teresa Ribera, in charge of post-confinement planning, says the changes “must overcome resistance derived from habits and conceptions that are well-established.”

Ribera said she has asked mayors to extend bike lane coverage, reduce car speed limits and provide for bike parking. But it wasn’t clear if the government would fund it. “We can, and we should, take advantage of this impulse to advance towards a new paradigm of sustainable mobility,” she said in a statement to The Associated Press.

Beyond infrastructure, cycling advocates say many minds must still be changed, noting that many officials have called for prioritizing the use of private vehicles in the lockdown. That’s where differences by country are sharper. In Britain, where people are still allowed to leave home to exercise, cycle shops stayed open during the lockdown that began March 23. In Spain, gas stations were considered essential, but not bicycle repair shops.

And while bike-sharing in London and Paris was made free to health care workers, most Spanish cities rushed to shut down the services, saying they would be a source of contagion. Madrid's hugely successful bicycle sharing operation reopened only last week, the sixth of Spain’s strict lockdown. Bikes are disinfected nightly and riders must wear gloves.

Many riders have been fined. The French Federation of Bicycle Users has received more than 800 reports from cyclists stopped by police, and dozens had to pay a 135 euro ($146) fine for violating restrictions.

“The attitude of the police is the attitude that many people show in the streets," said Pasamar, who keeps riding despite the risks of being stopped again. Unfortunately, he said, “bicycles are for many just a nuisance.”

Associated Press writers Colleen Barry in Milan, Italy; Franklin Briceño in Lima; César García in Bogotá; Juliet A. Williams in San Francisco; Jona Källgren in Berlin; Jill Lawless in London; and Sylvie Corbet in Paris contributed.

Emerging from lockdown: '46 days in the house was enough'

May 03, 2020

BEIJING (AP) — From the United States to Europe and Asia, people in many parts of the world are emerging from their homes as virus-related restrictions begin to ease and springtime temperatures climb.

But the global pandemic took a turn for the worse elsewhere. India on Sunday reported more than 2,600 new cases, its biggest single-day jump. That followed record increases in neighboring Pakistan and Russia the previous day.

China, which reported two new cases, saw a surge in visitors to tourist spots, many newly reopened, after a relaxation of domestic travel restrictions ahead of a five-day holiday that runs through Tuesday.

Nearly 1.7 million people visited Beijing parks on the first two days of the holiday, and Shanghai's main tourist spots welcomed more than a million visitors, according to Chinese media reports. Many spots limited the number of daily visitors to 30% of capacity or less, keeping crowds below average.

Masks were worn widely, from runners in Spain to beach-goers in the southern United States. In New York City's Central Park, joggers moved past each other without a glance on Saturday, and a steady stream of folks left tips for a trio working their way through a set of jazz standards alfresco.

“It’s great to have an audience after all these weeks,” saxophonist Julia Banholzer, a native of Germany, said. “All my dates have been canceled through September, and I don’t know if any will come back this year. New York is a tough place, but this is just another tough period we need to get through.”

Neighboring New Jersey reopened state parks, though several had to turn people away after reaching a 50% limit in their parking lots. Margie Roebuck and her husband were among the first on the sand at Island Beach State Park. “Forty-six days in the house was enough,” she said.

In Spain, many ventured out Saturday for the first time since a lockdown began on March 14. “I feel good, but tired. You sure notice that it has been a month and I am not in shape,” Cristina Palomeque said in Barcelona. “Some people think it may be too early, as I do, but it is also important to do exercise for health reasons.”

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez asked citizens to remain vigilant. COVID-19 has caused more than 25,100 deaths in Spain. “Until we have a vaccine, we are going to see more outbreaks,” Sánchez said. “What we need to guarantee is that these outbreaks do not put our national health system in danger.”

The divide in the United States between those who want lockdowns to end and those who want to move cautiously extended to Congress. The Republican-majority Senate will reopen Monday, while the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives stays shuttered. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s decision to convene 100 senators gives President Donald Trump, a Republican, the imagery he wants of America getting back to work, despite health worries and a lack of testing.

In India, air force helicopters showered flower petals on hospitals in several cities Sunday to thank doctors, nurses and police who have been at the forefront of the battle against the pandemic. U.S. Navy and Air Force fighter jets flew over Atlanta, Baltimore and Washington, D.C., on Saturday in honor of health care workers.

The number of confirmed cases in India neared 40,000 as the country of 1.3 billion people marked the 40th day of a nationwide lockdown that has upended lives and millions of jobs. The official death toll reached 1,301.

Russia announced 9,633 new cases Saturday, and Pakistan, nearly 1,300, both one-day highs. More than half of Russia's new cases were in Moscow, which is considering establishing temporary hospitals at sports complexes and shopping malls to deal with the influx of patients.

The virus has killed more than 240,000 people worldwide, including more than 66,000 in the United States and more than 24,000 each in Italy, Britain, France and Spain, according to a count kept by Johns Hopkins University. Health experts warn a second wave of infections could hit unless testing is expanded dramatically.

For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms. For some, especially older adults and those with health problems, it can cause severe illness such as pneumonia, or death. There are economic factors to consider as well. The shutdown of businesses has plunged the global economy into its deepest slump since the 1930s and wiped out millions of jobs.

Singapore announced Saturday it will let selected businesses reopen from May 12 in a cautious rollback of a two-month partial lockdown, and Sri Lanka said the government and private sector should resume work from May 11 "to ensure a return to normalcy in civilian life and to revive the economy.”

Bangladesh, which opened thousands of garment factories last month, confirmed 552 new cases on Saturday. The South Asian country's health care system is fragile, and authorities say they would not be able to provide ventilation and intensive care support for more than 500 people at one time.

Porter reported from New York. AP journalists around the world contributed to this report.

End of lockdown to uncork pent-up mourning for the lost

May 02, 2020

PARIS (AP) — As body after body has passed through his rubber-gloved hands, sealed in double-layered bags for disposal, Paris undertaker Franck Vasseur has become increasingly concerned about the future after the coronavirus pandemic.

All these people ferried in his hearse to cremations that their loved ones couldn't attend: when will they be mourned? All these lives cut short: how will they be celebrated? With lockdowns easing and people thawing out their on-hold lives, Vasseur suspects the enormity of so much loss will now start to sink in, unleashing pent-up grief that couldn't be fully comprehended and expressed when everyone was sealed away.

The homes of the dead will have to be visited. Belongings must be gathered up and heirlooms shared out. Commemorations that couldn't be held when large gatherings were banned need organizing. Ashes await collection in funeral parlors. Held-back tears will be shed.

Mimicking the motion of handing over an urn, Vasseur imagines the shock that awaits those who will have to be told: "Here, this is your mother or father who was in full health, who was watching television or you were chatting with 15 days ago."

“You get handed an urn and you cannot imagine for a single second the transition between when you were told that they had been infected by the virus and their death,” he said in an interview at his funeral parlor, L'Autre Rive.

The name translates as “The Other Shore,” conjuring up imagery of the River Styx that separated the living from the underworld in Greek mythology. The store has a majestic round wood table where, in better times, Vasseur and his clients would spend hours making funeral arrangements, talking about the departed.

“This is where the process of grieving starts,” he said. In lockdown, Vasseur says his job became "completely different,” a procession of death, disposal and paperwork, of days spent shuttling bodies from A to B, of waiting in line with other hearses and dealing by phone and email with locked-down families he could no longer comfort in person.

“For all these families, what impact will this have on the process of mourning?” he wonders. “There may well be a grey zone in people’s minds,” he said. “Like a blackout.” Because bodies had to be sealed in coffins, their loved ones couldn't give them a tender last look or caress. And people locked down outside Paris felt that because of the stay-home rules, police patrols and travel permits that had to be shown to them, it wasn't wise to break quarantine.

“They said, ‘Send us a photo of mother in her coffin.’ So they could visualize the deceased and their departure," Vasseur said. Some families sent tokens of affection, messages, cuddly toys for Vasseur to put in the coffin. He sent them back photos taken with his mobile phone.

Some are in denial. “They have already asked me: ‘Are you sure that she was cremated? Is she really dead? I don’t believe it. It’s not true,'" he said. “All that means that they are going to have huge difficulties moving ahead with the process of grieving," he said. “I think it’s going to be complicated for a lot of people.”

Spaniards pour out for 1st exercise in 7 weeks of lockdown

May 02, 2020

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Thousands of Spaniards woke up early on Saturday to lace up their running shoes for the first time in seven weeks after the government ended a prohibition on outdoor exercise.

At 6 a.m. early risers poured into the streets dressed in athletic gear to run, bike, and speed walk, with many taking extra caution to loosen up atrophied muscles and avoid a twisted ankle that would ruin the joy of release.

A few tried running with a face mask despite the difficulty it causes with breathing. The masks will be obligatory to wear on public transport starting Monday to reduce the chance of infection from the virus that causes COVID-19.

“I feel good, but tired. You sure notice that it has been a month and I am not in shape,” 36-year-old Cristina Palomeque said in Barcelona after taking a break following a 20-minute jog. She had grown tired of following Zumba and yoga classes online.

“Some people think it may be too early (to go out), as I do, but it is also important to do exercise for health reasons,” she said. A brilliant sunny sky in Barcelona drew many to the maritime promenade to get as close as possible to the beach, which is still off-limits. People are supposed to respect a 2-meter distance, but the crowds in some spots made that impossible.

“We woke up very early so that we wouldn’t find it too full of people, but … it’s complicated,” 37-year-old Eduardo Conte said after a run along the Mediterranean beachfront. “I feel a rush (being back outside), but you have to take it easy so we don’t all end up with injuries.”

The scene was similar to that seen last weekend when Spain’s children were let out for a walk with a parent for the first time in six weeks. After some chastising by local officials in the worst cases, the population behaved better throughout the week.

The government has set up time slots for age groups and activities to prevent crowds from forming and exposing the most at-risk elders. People between 14 and 70 can now go out for individual exercise, and couples in that age group who live together can go for walks, from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. People over 70 can go out from 10 a.m. to noon and 7 p.m. to 8 p.m., with one caregiver if needed. Children under 14 are now allowed to go out between noon and 7 p.m. for walks with one parent, for up one hour, within 1 kilometer (half a mile) of home. They cannot play with other children.

Towns and villages with fewer than 5,000 inhabitants are exempt from the timetable dividing people by age groups. “I am convinced that over the coming months, until we have a vaccine, we are going to see more outbreaks (of the virus),” Sánchez said. “What we need to guarantee is that these outbreaks do not put our national health system in danger.”

Since Spain’s lockdown started on March 14, only adults have only been able to leave home, and only for shopping for food, medicine and other essential goods, and to walk dogs close to home. For two weeks all commuting was banned; now only unavoidable commutes to and from work are allowed, with authorities encouraging people to work from home.

Spain has detailed a complex rollback plan that will vary by province that will take effect on Monday. Those with the fewest cases and with health care resources to handle a rebound of the virus will be the first to enjoy a further loosening of the measures.

The lockdown, among the strictest in the world, has succeeded in reducing daily increases of over 20% in cases to under 1% and saving Spain’s hospitals from collapse. Spain has 25,100 confirmed deaths from the virus after a daily increase of 276 was reported on Saturday. That is down from daily death tolls of over 900 a month ago. Another 1,147 cases reported over the past 24 hours took the total of confirmed infections to 216,582.

The huge field hospital the military helped set up in a convention center in Madrid was closed on Friday. Madrid had already closed the makeshift morgue the army had established in an ice rink. In Madrid, police reminded athletes that parks were still off-limits on town hall orders.

“These are very strong restrictions, but it is what it is. We have to follow the instructions from the Health Ministry because they know more than us,” 52-year-old Manuel Garcia said in the capital. “This feeling of freedom is great. When this gets back to normal, all of us will feel even better.”

Renata Brito in Barcelona and Alicia León in Madrid contributed.

Western Europe relaxes virus measures, Russia numbers spike

May 02, 2020

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Spaniards filled the streets Saturday to exercise outside in gorgeous spring weather for the first time in seven weeks, while German children rushed to playgrounds as countries in Western Europe moved ahead with the gradual relaxation of coronavirus lockdown restrictions.

Russia and Pakistan, however, reported their biggest one-day spikes in new infections, in a sign the pandemic is far from over. Concern was growing in Moscow that hospitals might become overwhelmed after Russia recorded a new one-day high of 9,633 new infections, a 20% increase over Friday's count, which itself was a new daily record.

Russia has now reported 124,054 total cases, with 15,013 recoveries and 1,222 fatalities. True numbers are believed to be higher because not everyone is tested and Russian tests are reported to be only 70% to 80% accurate.

Moscow’s mayor said this week that officials are considering establishing temporary hospitals at sports complexes and shopping malls to deal with the influx of patients. Infection cases have reached the highest levels of government, with both the prime minister and the construction minister contracting the virus.

In Russia's far northeast, officials said 3,000 of 10,000 workers at a vast natural gas field had tested positive, Russian news agencies reported. Employees of one of the contractors at the field reportedly held a protest this week claiming insufficient measures were being taken against the virus’ spread.

At the same time, Spain, one of the worst-hit countries in the world with 25,100 deaths and more than 216,500 cases of COVID-19, was rolling back some emergency measures that helped bring the outbreak under control and save hospitals from collapse. A huge field hospital at a Madrid convention center was closed Friday, and the capital has already closed a makeshift morgue at an ice rink in a shopping mall.

Since Spain’s lockdown started March 14, only adults have been able to leave home, for shopping for food, medicine and other essential goods, and to walk dogs close to home. The lockdown is credited with succeeding in reducing daily increases of infections from more than 20% to less than 1%.

As restrictions were relaxed Saturday, people ran, walked, or rode bicycles under a brilliant sunny sky in Barcelona, where many flocked to the maritime promenade to get as close as possible to the still-off-limits beach.

“I feel good, but tired. You sure notice that it has been a month and I am not in shape,” 36-year-old Cristina Palomeque said in Barcelona. “Some people think it may be too early, as I do, but it is also important to do exercise for health reasons.”

The government has set up time slots for age groups and activities, and social-distancing measures requiring people to stay 6 feet apart. On Monday, face masks will be required for people riding public transit but many of those out and about on Saturday weren't wearing them. Until now, the government had only highly recommended the masks in trains, metros and buses in addition to social distancing rules.

Spain has detailed a complex rollback plan that will vary by province. Those with the fewest cases and with health care resources in place to handle a rebound of the virus will be the first to enjoy further loosening of the measures.

“We must take it with caution and responsibility,” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez wrote on Twitter. “The virus is still with us. We need to respect the rules as well as the guidelines for hygiene and social distancing.”

The virus has killed more than 238,000 people worldwide, including more than 65,000 in the United States and more than 20,000 each in Italy, Britain and France, according to a count kept by Johns Hopkins University. Health experts warn a second wave of infections could hit unless testing is expanded dramatically.

U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday he hopes the total number of U.S. deaths will be below 100,000, which he acknowledged is a “horrible number.” As the crisis stabilizes in some European countries and American states, governments are easing the shutdown of businesses that plunged the global economy into its deepest slump since the 1930's and wiped out millions of jobs.

Trump, who is running for reelection in the midst of a U.S. economic slump that has wiped out more than 10 million jobs, is pressing state governors to lift controls despite warnings by some health experts that might lead to a spike in infections.

In Italy, which has seen the most deaths in Europe with more than 28,000, people looked enviously at Spain as they awaited their own relaxation of restrictions now that the number of new cases has leveled out.

Italy’s special commissioner for combating the coronavirus, Domenico Arcuri, said that the gradual loosening of the two-month lockdown, starting Monday, signals a new challenge, “which by now is clear to everyone; we don't know how long it will last.”

More masks will be distributed for people riding public transportation, whose numbers are expected to climb as the manufacturing and construction sectors emerge from the lockdown. Stores, restaurants, bars and cultural sites like museums remain closed until May 18.

Germany, which has registered more than 164,000 cases but seen only about 6,700 deaths, has strict social-distancing guidelines but never restricted people going outside for exercise. Smaller shops have already opened and this is the first weekend in which playgrounds, museums and zoos are permitted to open as well.

Elsewhere, China, where the pandemic began in December, reported a single new infection Saturday, extending a steady decline in confirmed cases. South Korea reported six new cases on Saturday, none of them in the hard-hit city of Daegu in the southeast. Both countries are easing anti-virus controls and reviving economic activity.

But Pakistan on Saturday announced 1,297 new cases, raising the total in the country of 220 million people to 18,114. The increase coincides with increased testing. The government said more than 9,000 tests were conducted in the previous 24 hours. Prime Minister Imran Khan has set a goal of 20,000 per day.

Photos in newspapers showed large numbers of the faithful at Pakistani mosques and only some following social distancing rules. Khan's government said it might ease controls, but doctors have pleaded for stricter lockdowns, warning an explosion of infections would overwhelm hospitals that have only 3,000 intensive care beds nationwide.

Africa now has more than 40,000 reported cases, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There have also been more than 1,600 deaths across the continent from the virus, which has been reported in every country except for tiny and mountainous Lesotho.

Rising reported from Berlin; Heintz reported from Moscow. AP journalists around the world contributed to this report.

Misery of Italy's migrants grows not from virus but lockdown

May 02, 2020

CASTEL VOLTURNO, Italy (AP) — They are known as “the invisibles": Undocumented African migrants who, even before the coronavirus outbreak plunged Italy into crisis, barely scraped by as day laborers, prostitutes, freelance hairdressers and seasonal farm hands.

Locked down for two months in crumbling apartments in a mob-infiltrated town north of Naples, their hand-to-mouth existence has grown even more precarious with no work, no food and no hope. Italy is preparing to reopen some business and industry on Monday in a preliminary easing of its virus shutdown. But there is no indication that “the invisibles” of Castel Volturno will get back to work anytime soon, and no evidence that the government’s social nets will ease their misery.

“I need help. Help me. For my children, for my husband, I need help,” said a tearful Mary Sado Ofori, a Nigerian hairdresser and mother of three who has been holed up in her overcrowded apartment block. She ran out of milk for her 6-month old, and is getting by on handouts from a friend.

A patchwork team of a volunteers, medics, a priest, a cultural mediator and local city hall officials are trying to make sure “the invisibles” aren’t forgotten entirely, delivering groceries daily to their choked apartments and trying to provide health care. But the need is outstripping the resources.

“There is an emergency within the COVID emergency which is a social emergency,” said Sergio Serraiano, who runs a health clinic in town. “We knew this was going to happen, and we were waiting for it from the beginning.”

The virus struck hardest in Italy’s prosperous industrial north, where the first homegrown case was registered Feb. 21 and where most of the infected and 27,000 dead were recorded. The bulk of the government’s attention and response focused on reinforcing the health care system there to withstand the onslaught of tens of thousands of sick.

Castel Volturno is another world entirely, a 27-kilometer (17-mile) strip of land running along the sea north of Naples that is controlled by the Camorra organized crime syndicate. Here there have only been about a dozen COVID cases, and none among the migrants.

But Castel Volturno has other problems that the COVID crisis has exacerbated. Known as the “Terra dei Fuochi” or land of fires, Castel Volturno and surrounding areas have unusually high cancer rates, blamed on the illegal dumping and burning of toxic waste that have polluted the air, sea and underground wells.

Here the mob runs drugs and waste disposal, and officials have warned the clans are primed to exploit the economic misery that the virus shutdowns have caused. It is also here that “the invisibles” have settled over the years, many after crossing the Mediterranean from Libya in smugglers boats hoping for a better life. No one knows their numbers for certain, but estimates run as high as 600,000 nationally. In Castel Volturno, a city with an official population of around 26,000, there are estimates of 10,000 to 20,000.

The men get by on day jobs picking tomatoes, lemons or oranges, or in construction where they earn 25 euros (US$28) a day. The woman sell their bodies, or if they are lucky, work as freelance hairstylists or selling trinkets and cigarette lighters on the street.

In normal times, the men gather at 4 a.m. at the roundabouts that dot the Via Domiziana main drag, waiting for trucks to pick them up and take them to farms or construction sites. But since the lockdown, even that illegal off-the-books system known as “caporalato” has ground to a halt.

The migrants, who already were living precariously without official residency or work permits, now can’t pay their rent or buy food. “We don’t have electricity. We don’t have water. We don’t have documents,” said Jimmy Donko, a 43-year-old Ghanaian migrant who lives with 46 Nigerian and Ghanaian men in a dark, rundown house where filthy dishes fill the kitchen sink and old blankets serve as curtains over broken windows.

To bathe, wash and flush the toilet, he and his housemates walk 300 meters (yards) with buckets to a fountain and back. The level of desperation is apparent everywhere: With no electricity or refrigeration, food spoils quickly and is cooked immediately. On a recent day, cooked fish and goat heads were left out on shelves. Outside, chicken was being cooked on a makeshift stove made from old mattress springs.

A consortium of unions and nonprofit organizations has called for a general amnesty to legalize undocumented migrants. Government ministers have vowed to help even those in the black-market economy survive the emergency. A proposed law would legalize migrant farm workers for the strawberry, peach and melon harvests, given that Italy’s legal seasonal farm hands have been kept at home in Eastern Europe because of virus travel restrictions.

But no proposals have made it into law, and there is fierce opposition nationwide and in tiny Castel Volturno to any moves to legalize the African workforce currently here. “We are talking about 20,000 illegal migrants in a population of 26,000 inhabitants – that makes it almost equal one foreigner for one Italian,” said Mayor Luigi Petrella, of the right-wing, anti-migrant Brothers of Italy party. “It seems absurd to propose something like that.”

That said, city hall is working to feed the masses, teaming up with the local Centro Fernandes refugee center to bring bags of food each day to the locked-down, out-of-work migrants. The Rev. Daniele Moschetti, a former missionary in Nairobi, Kenya, now delivers groceries to the poor in his homeland.

“It was different when I was in Nairobi,” he said, during a break in his grocery rounds. “There was poverty, but it was more human. Here there is something diabolical about all this, something evil in how all these people are treated.”

Nicole Winfield contributed from Rome.

May brings reopenings around the globe as virus toll climbs

May 01, 2020

NEW YORK (AP) — May is bringing cautious reopenings from coronavirus lockdowns, from Beijing’s Forbidden city to shopping malls in Texas, as the grim economic toll from the pandemic ticks higher. Many communities around the world are inching toward normalcy without certainty over whether they’ve vanquished outbreaks of the virus. But bleak new figures released Thursday underscored the pain inflicted by the disease and added to pressure on leaders to end shutdowns.

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits surpassed a staggering 30 million and the European economy shrank a record 3.8% in the first quarter as hotels, restaurants, construction sites and manufacturing were frozen by lockdowns.

As bad as those and other numbers are, some are outdated because of the lag in gathering data so the true situation is almost certainly much worse. Still, analysts saw a glimmer of hope in the way new unemployment claims have fallen for four straight weeks. Andrew Stettner, a senior fellow at the Century Foundation, said the wave of layoffs at vulnerable businesses such as restaurants, hotels and stores may have largely run its course.

“Thankfully, for now, the economic contagion seems to have plateaued,” Stettner said. “But we’re still at a level that is a mortal threat to the nation’s financial well-being.” Layoffs amount to 1 in 6 American workers and encompass more people than the entire population of Texas. Some economists say the U.S. unemployment rate for April may be as high as 20% — a figure not seen since the Depression of the 1930s, when joblessness peaked at 25%.

China's ancient, majestic Forbidden City reopened on Friday with all tickets for the May 1-5 holiday period sold out, and a limit of 5,000 visitors a day, down from the earlier maximum of 80,000. The Chinese capital reopened its parks and museums, with controlled entries, about three months after hundreds of millions of people were ordered into a near lockdown as the coronavirus outbreak erupted in the central city of Wuhan.

China on Friday reported 12 new cases, six of them brought from overseas, and no new deaths for the 16th day. In the U.S., where large numbers of people are still dying from COVID-19, health officials are warning of the danger of a second wave of infection, and some employers and employees have expressed fear of going back to work.

Lacey Ward, an Omaha hairstylist, said she is worried that the Nebraska governor’s decision to let salons reopen on May 4 could put her and her family at risk. She would prefer to collect unemployment until the danger subsides.

“I feel like we are literally the guinea pigs in this situation,” she said. Finding enough workers willing to return is proving to be a challenge for Jennifer Holliday, manager at a restaurant in Oklahoma City that will reopen its dining room Friday. Many of her employees are not returning calls or messages.

“There are some who want to just ride it out and take the unemployment,” she said. In some states, authorities are adopting a more cautious stance: California Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered beaches in Orange County closed until further notice after tens of thousands of people flocked to the sand last weekend.

Still, many states and countries are pressing ahead, relaxing stay-at-home restrictions amid impatience among those who complain of lost livelihoods and say their rights are being trampled. Simon Property Group Inc., the biggest U.S. mall operator, plans to open 49 shopping centers Friday across 10 states, including Texas, Indiana and Georgia.

Malls will be keeping workers masked and limiting the numbers of shoppers. Some stores may just partially open at first or just have curbside pickup. The Texas coronavirus death toll hit a single-day high of 50 Thursday as the state was preparing for a slow reboot by reopening retailers, restaurants, malls and movie theaters to limited numbers of customers. The 119 killed over the past three days marks the deadliest stretch since the state’s first fatality in the pandemic was recorded March 17.

In other parts of the world, shutdowns are winding down, with caution. Malaysia's Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said most business activities will reopen from Monday, days before a two-month lockdown is due to end, after infections fell sharply in recent weeks. Thailand was preparing to reopen parks and some retailers, hair salons and restaurants, while keeping a 10 p.m.-4 a.m. curfew in place and extending its ban on sales of alcohol.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who recently recovered from COVID-19, said the U.K. is “past the peak” and “on a downward slope” in its outbreak but was expected to extend precautions, while Germany, Portugal and the Czech Republic were set to start loosening their restrictions.

With signs that the outbreak has stabilized in places, and after news that the economy shrank at a 4.8% annual rate in the first three months of the year with a crushing 40% drop projected for this quarter, President Donald Trump chose not to extend the White House’s social-distancing guidelines past their expiration Thursday. Those guidelines encouraged people to work from home and avoid restaurants, groups and nonessential travel.

Trump continued to speculate on the origins of the coronavirus, saying that China could have unleashed it on the world due to some kind of horrible “mistake” or that it might have been released intentionally. Intelligence agencies said they are still examining a notion put forward by the president and aides that the pandemic may have resulted from an accident at a Chinese lab.

The virus has killed over 230,000 people worldwide, including more than 61,000 in the U.S., according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. Confirmed infections globally topped 3.2 million, with 1 million of them in the U.S., but the true numbers are believed to be much higher because of limited testing, differences in counting the dead and concealment by some governments.

Rugaber reported from Washington, Kurtenbach from Bangkok. AP journalists around the world contributed to this report.

Serbia opposition stage curfew protest against government

April 30, 2020

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — A group of Serbian opposition leaders on Thursday staged a protest during an evening curfew to voice their criticism of the populist government's measures against the new coronavirus.

Also Thursday, thousands banged pots and blew whistles from their windows and balconies, even as authorities eased a previously announced 83-hour curfew planned for the upcoming weekend. Serbia’s populist government in mid-March introduced some of the harshest measures in Europe, imposing a state of emergency, banning people over 65 years old from leaving their homes and imposing daily and weekend curfews.

Government critics have insisted that the authorities of autocratic President Aleksandar Vucic have used the state of emergency to curb democracy and media freedoms. Vucic has denied this. Leaders of several opposition parties on Thursday gathered at the start of the curfew at 6 p.m., holding speeches outside the Serbian parliament building in Belgrade. They wore masks but didn't fully respect social-distancing measures.

No opposition supporters were invited to the protests, but some supporters of the government showed up, shouting at the opposition leaders. No major incidents were reported. The curfew initially was meant to last until Monday morning to prevent people from socializing during the brief May Day holiday, but the government earlier on Thursday shortened the ban following public pressure.

Fueling tensions, pro-government protesters and apparent soccer hooligans on Wednesday lit flares in support of Vucic on top of several buildings in the new part of town, drawing sharp public criticism.

Serbia has reported 9,009 infections while 179 people have died. The Balkan country has started easing the measures, but experts have warned that the situation is still volatile.

Russian prime minister says he tested positive for virus

April 30, 2020

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said Thursday that he has tested positive for the new coronavirus, becoming the highest-ranking Russian official known to have gotten infected. Mishustin told President Vladimir Putin during a video call that he would self-isolate but planned to stay in touch on key policy issues. It wasn't immediately clear when the two men last met.

Since early in the outbreak, the Russian president has minimized meetings and switched to holding daily video calls with officials. First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov will temporarily perform Mishustin’s duties.

Mishustin, a 54-year old former tax chief, was named prime minister in January. During the video call, which was recorded and later televised, he didn't say if he had COVID-19 symptoms or anything about his general condition. He displayed no visible signs of illness and spoke without difficulty.

Putin wished Mishustin a swift recovery and said he hoped the prime minister would continue taking part in drafting policies to shore up the Russian economy, which has been hurt by the virus pandemic.

“What happened to you, could happen to anyone,” Putin said. “Along with other Cabinet members and colleagues from the presidential office, you have undoubtedly been in the zone of high risk.” “No matter how you limit contacts, it’s impossible to avoid communication with people while drafting decisions,” Putin said.

He asked the prime minister to call him after checking into a hospital. Russians who have the virus but light or no symptoms of illness are allowed to stay home, and it wasn't immediately clear if Mishustin's hospitalization reflected the gravity of his condition or was an extra precaution.

“I hope you will remain in good physical shape and take an active part in drafting decisions that we discussed today,” Putin said in a reference to a call with top officials earlier Thursday. “Those decisions will not be made without your participation, your input.”

In Russia, the prime minister oversees the economy and answers to the president. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, who leads a government panel tasked with managing Russia's virus oubreak, said Mishustin had undergone regular testing for the virus and strictly observed safety protocols to avoid exposure or spreading the virus.

“It's a signal to all of us - let's drop all that populist talk” about lifting restrictions, Sobyanin said in televised comments. Mishustin himself sent a similar message to the Russian people, saying that his personal situation underlined the need for strictly observing a government-ordered lockdown.

“Please remember, that the date when the country could return to a normal way of living depends on everyone's discipline and will,” he said. Mishustin's spokesman, Boris Belyakov, said the prime minister mostly relied on video calls to communicate during the pandemic and had direct contact with a very narrow circle of people, who are now quarantined and will be tested for the coronavirus.

Russian health officials reported a record daily spike of 7,099 new confirmed cases on Thursday morning, which brought the country’s total caseload to 106,498, including 1,073 deaths. Friday marks the start of long May holidays, a period when Russians flock to country homes, meet with friends and have barbecues.

Earlier this week, Putin extended a partial economic shutdown imposed in late March to run through May 11, the end of the holiday periods. Regional authorities across vast Russia have similarly prolonged lockdowns obliging most people except those working in a few vital industries to stay home. Only visits to nearby stores and pharmacies and walks with dogs are allowed in most cities.

Germany relaxes lockdown for playgrounds, churches and zoos

April 30, 2020

BERLIN (AP) — German authorities agreed Thursday to reopen playgrounds, churches and cultural institutions such as museums and zoos that have been shuttered because of the coronavirus pandemic, but they postponed a decision on whether to relax the rules for restaurants, hotels and kindergartens.

Chancellor Angela Merkel said that while there would be regional differences because of Germany's federal structure, the overall goal remains ensuring the health system can cope with the country's outbreak.

“So far, we have managed to succeed in doing so,” Merkel told reporters after a meeting with the governors of Germany's 16 states. “We have all together achieved a lot in recent weeks.” Germany, a country of 83 million people, recorded more than 162,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 6,563 deaths in all, according to figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University. That is about a quarter the number of virus-related deaths reported in Britain and France, even though the three countries have similar numbers of confirmed cases.

Over the past week, Germany recorded between 1,000 and 1,500 new cases a day, down from 2,000 the previous week. The country's success in flattening the curve of infections has sparked calls for its lockdown to end, particularly from businesses that have been forced to close because of social distancing measures.

Jobless figures released Thursday showed unemployment in Germany rose by 308,000 to over 2.6 million in the past month. The jobless rate in April stood at 5.8%, up from 5.1% in March. Employers avoided the bigger layoffs seen in other countries by taking advantage of Germany’s short-work program, which allows companies in distress to receive state funds if they hold onto employees rather than letting them go.

Labor Minister Hubertus Heil said companies registered about 10.1 million employees for short work — more than a fifth of the country’s workforce. Restaurants, bars and hotels were particularly hard hit, with 93% of those employed in the sector now in short work, he said.

The governor of North Rhine-Westphalia state, Armin Laschet, told public broadcaster ZDF that the economic downturn was “a very, very high price that we’ve talked about far too little in recent weeks.”

Merkel said the federal and state governments wouldn't make a decision on reopening hotels and restaurants at their next meeting on May 6, which will focus on further relaxing the rules for schools, childcare centers and sports facilities.

“Caution is required, as well as sticking to hygiene measures,” she said. Federal and state authorities also agreed Thursday to extend a ban on large sports events, concerts and festivals until at least Aug. 31.

But Germany's hospitals will be allowed to resume routine operations that had been ordered put on hold last month, after data showed a sufficient reserve of intensive care unit beds. Still, like elsewhere, medical personnel in the country are feeling the strain.

“The burden is certainly great as we have to deal with a highly infectious disease every day, and the treatment regime is not clearly defined,” said Dr. Daniel Heidenkummer, who oversees the treatment of COVID-19 patients at the InnKlinikum Altoetting, near Germany’s border with Austria.

The hospital has treated almost 600 patients with severe illness resulting from the coronavirus since early March. Restrictions on visitors mean that staff members have to spend more time tending to the emotional welfare of patients, a burden that would normally be borne largely by friends and family, Heidenkummer said.

Merkel acknowledged the sacrifices made by many Germans because of the lockdown. But she defended the virologists and public health experts who have been providing seemingly contradictory advice to the government, noting that there is always an element of uncertainty to scientific research.

“That’s why science is so exciting, because you never do the same thing twice,” Merkel said, citing her own experience as a physicist before entering politics more than 30 years ago. “We politicians are there to draw conclusions,” she said.

Matthias Schrader in Munich contributed to this report.

Europe's employment aid keeps jobs from vanishing -- for now

April 30, 2020

PARIS (AP) — Christian Etchebest's Parisian bistro is a shadow of its usual bustling self. Five lunch specials sit in neat paper bags on the bar awaiting takeout customers — a tiny fraction of his normal midday business before the coronavirus.

A skeleton staff rotates in daily at La Cantine du Troquet near the banks of the Seine River, just blocks from the Eiffel Tower. One day they packaged a streamlined version of his Basque menu: sausages with a celery and beetroot remoulade, mashed potatoes and a dessert of strawberries with lemon sauce.

Yet Etchebest isn't facing bankruptcy — not yet anyway — thanks to a French government program that lets him put staff on reduced hours and makes up most of their lost salary, on the condition they are not fired. That is giving him a chance to keep his team together, awaiting the day when restrictions are lifted and sit-down meals are again allowed at this restaurant and his six others across Paris.

Similar programs are keeping hard-hit businesses across Europe afloat, preventing millions of workers from losing their jobs and income for now, and thousands of bosses from seeing their trained staff scatter. Some 11.3 million workers in France are getting up to 84% of net salary. The government estimates the cost at 24 billion euros ($26 billion), with half of all private sector employees expected to take part.

In Germany, some 3 million workers are being supported, with the government paying up to 60% of their net salary if they are temporarily put on shorter or zero hours. Those with children get 67%, and many companies such as Volkswagen add more.

The impact of the pandemic and the cushioning provided by such short-work programs were underlined in reports released Thursday that showed the unemployment rate in the 19-country eurozone edged up only by a tenth of a point to 7.4% in March despite a record economic contraction. GDP tanked 3.8% quarter-on-quarter in the first three months of the year and is forecast to slide even more in the second quarter.

The work support programs are different from jobless benefits. They are only for temporary shutdowns that are no fault of the business itself. And they are no panacea. Such programs can't save jobs that disappear due to long-term slowdowns in customer demand or to technological changes. But it gives workers and bosses breathing space and hope, preventing the unnecessary destruction of viable businesses.

“I will roll up my sleeves up and I will fight for all my restaurants,” Etchebest said. “For the majority of my staff to remain with me and so on. What else can I say? I can’t contemplate the contrary ... I will fight for it until the end.”

His chef, Thierry Lararralde, was weathering the crisis financially thanks to the support. “I can't say I'm struggling; my net salary is around 3,000 euros ($3,222 a month), I am making 700 euros ($750) less." He is making ends meet by spending less on gas and cooking at home: “It's cheaper, we adapt.”

The takeout crew pushed aside their masks to eat together, Etchebest slicing a rare roast beef on a wooden board for them. Etchebest realizes the road ahead could be tough after they re-open with fewer tables due to social distancing requirements.

“I am fully aware we will have 40%, 50% less of business,” he said, adding that some employees with health risks may not return. “I think everyone needs to adapt their business model — financially and operationally."

Economist Holger Schaefer at the German Economic Institute in Cologne said short-work support gives employers more options than the stark choice of keeping people or firing them. “I can say, ‘You come 70% of the hours, or 50% or 30%.' One doesn't have to say either all or nothing,” he said. “When the crisis is past and the demand for labor rises, then the business owner has exactly the right staff available right away and doesn't have to find new people.”

The support also bolsters the entire economy. “When someone is afraid that their job will be lost in the near future, that person limits their consumption, they don't buy a new car and spend less money, and that has in turn an effect on the macro-economy,” Schaefer said.

Short-work schemes proved their value during the Great Recession in Germany, where 1.4 million workers took part. The unemployment rate only edged up, from 7.3% in January 2009 to 7.5% in December that year, even as the economy shrank a painful 5%. Growth then quickly rebounded.

It's the flip side of a European labor market, where worker protections are often blamed for deterring hiring in good times and where income taxes are higher to pay for the safety nets. It took seven years for unemployment to drop from a peak of over 12% in 2013 in euro-currency countries to 7.3% in February.

Femke Zimmermann, manager of Brasserie Berlage in The Hague in the Netherlands, has her eye on re-opening even as she spends most days at home looking after her 1-year-old and 5-year-old sons while the restaurant’s owners pay her with government help.

For now, she is not overly worried about losing her job. She stays in contact with her team and asked them to come in to give the restaurant a two-day spring clean. “They hate sitting at home. They want to do something for the business,” she said.

Athens waiter George Sakkas, 26, is getting by on a Greek government program that lets businesses suspend workers' contracts and replaces their pay with a flat stipend of 800 euros ($870). Businesses that take the help cannot fire staff.

"The stipend definitely helped,” he said, noting the amount was roughly what he would make anyway. “In the beginning we didn’t know about the stipend, so (the closing) hit us very badly,” he said. “When the stipend arrived it gave us some breathing space."

McHugh reported from Frankfurt, Germany. Associated Press writers Mike Corder in The Hague, Netherlands; Angela Charlton in Paris and Theodora Tongas in Athens contributed to this report.

UK now has world's third-highest virus-related death toll

April 29, 2020

LONDON (AP) — The U.K. has the third-highest coronavirus death toll in the world after the British government published new figures Wednesday that include deaths outside of hospitals. After factoring in deaths in all settings such as care homes, the number of people in Britain who have died after testing positive for the virus has now hit 26,097, way ahead of the 21,678 announced on Tuesday. Until now, hospital deaths have been reported daily, while deaths in nursing homes and other settings were reported separately on a weekly basis.

Under the new measurement, the U.K. has leapfrogged Spain and France in Europe, with only Italy ahead. The U.S. has the world's highest death toll. The upward revision prompted renewed criticism of the government's approach throughout the crisis. The new leader of the main opposition Labour Party, Keir Starmer, said the scale of deaths in the U.K. is “truly dreadful” and has accused the Conservative government of being too slow in putting the country into lockdown, in testing people for the virus and in getting critical protective gear for medical workers.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab sought to ease any worries, saying the additional deaths were a cumulative total going back to March 2. “They don’t represent a sudden surge in the number of deaths,” he said at the government's daily press briefing.

In spite of that, it is becoming increasingly clear that the U.K. could end up with the second-highest coronavirus death toll in the world, partly because Italy is considered to be around a couple of weeks ahead in the epidemic.

There is also an acknowledgement that the new figures underestimate the total death toll in care homes as they only include those who have tested positive for the coronavirus. Also, the death certificates of those dying in care homes can take a couple of weeks to be issued.

Professor Yvonne Doyle, medical director at Public Health England, said the new figures, which her organization helped to compile, provide “a comprehensive picture, and this is most important for control.”

In spite of the grim death news, the trends in most of the virus-related numbers are heading in the right direction. The number of people being hospitalized with the coronavirus has been falling for the best part of three weeks, particularly in London, which was the epicenter of the outbreak in the country. Also the number of coronavirus-related deaths are falling when measured on a seven-day rolling basis.

Doyle said she could not yet say whether deaths in care homes were falling but that “we should know that soon because the hospital curve has declined." Raab said it was too soon for the government to make an assessment as to whether its five tests on easing the lockdown restrictions have been met. Among those tests are a “sustained and consistent fall" in daily coronavirus-related daily deaths, and reliable data showing that the rate of inflection has moderated to manageable levels.

“We are coming through the peak but we are not there yet, which is why we are keeping our focus on the social distancing measures," he said. The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, or SAGE, is due to deliver its latest advice to ministers in the next few days but all the signs are that the government will extend most of the lockdown restrictions from May 7.

Earlier this week on his return to work after recovering from COVID-19, Prime Minister Boris Johnson, said the country was at "the moment of maximum risk.” Johnson missed Prime Minister's Questions earlier Wednesday because his partner gave birth to a baby boy.

Jill Lawless contributed to this story.

Virus-ravaged Europe nudges some doors open, not others

April 28, 2020

PARIS (AP) — Europeans are starting to venture outside after weeks of confinement, scarred by a virus that has overwhelmed some of the world's best health care systems and killed more than 120,000 in the continent, yet yearning to rediscover signs of normalcy.

Leaving lockdown looks different in Berlin than it does in Madrid, however, as each government sets its own rules and pace for letting Europe’s half a billion people taste freedom again. Here are some of the measures being rolled out:

FRANCE

France outlined a plan Tuesday to open up some shops, farmers' markets, schools and small museums starting May 11 — but only if the country can keep infections under control. Restaurants, parks, major museums and other businesses that underpin the all-important tourism economy will stay shuttered until at least June 2. French people will be allowed to venture farther from home starting May 11, but only up to 100 kilometers (60 miles) away.

To ward off a second wave of infections, France will conduct at least 700,000 virus tests a week, and everyone taking public transport, taxis or shared car services will be required to wear a mask. The French government is also working on a virus tracing app, which has raised privacy concerns.

Authorities say more than 23,000 people have died with the virus in French hospitals and nursing homes.

SPAIN

Spain’s 7-week-old lockdown is one of the world's strictest, and its government announced Tuesday a cautious, four-phase approach toward a “new normal.”

Children under 14, who were kept inside for weeks, are now allowed to go outside for an hour a day. Everyone will be able to leave their homes to play sports, do exercise or take a stroll starting Saturday.

If they've taken necessary precautions, street stores can open May 11, but not malls. Tourist accommodation can also reopen, except for common areas. In Phase Two, restaurants, museums and monuments can allow visitors up to a third of normal capacity.

Educational establishments will reopen for children under age six whose parents are both at work, for children who have fallen behind in their studies, and for students to sit university entrance exams. Schools will not fully reopen before September.

The rollback will occur at different speeds in the country’s provinces. Each will be measured according to “markers,” such as the number of infections, the economic status of people in the area and the local health service’s capacity, before advancing to the next phase.

A total of 23,822 deaths in Spain are attributed to the new coronavirus, with more than 210,000 people infected.

ITALY

Italy, hit earliest and hardest of any country in Europe, has already begun a gradual reopening, with some strategic industries such as car exporters allowed to resume production this week.

Starting May 4, Italians will be able move around a bit more freely within their regions, including in parks — which have been closed for weeks to ward off a virus that has killed more than 27,000. Funerals will be allowed, but Catholic churches will still be barred from holding Mass.

On May 18, retail shops and museums can reopen, and soccer clubs and other teams can restart training. Bars and restaurants, beauty salons and barber shops can reopen starting in June. Schools remain closed until September.

GERMANY

Germany, which has lost 6,000 people to the virus but has managed to contain it better than other world powers, began its first steps to ease restrictions on April 20, allowing smaller shops to reopen while sticking to strict social-distancing measures and bans on large gatherings of people.

Everyone using public transport or shopping must wear a mask. Shops of up to 800 square meters (8,600 square feet) have been permitted to reopen, along with some other businesses like car dealers and bicycle shops.

German schools have been closed since mid-March and the government hopes to be able to reopen them step by step from May 4, with the oldest students returning first. Hairdressers are also allowed to open then.

GREECE

Greece's prime minister outlined a plan Tuesday for lifting a lockdown that has been credited with keeping the coronavirus death toll and number of critically ill patients low. Outdoor individual sports will be permitted again starting May 4, and bookshops, hair salons and electronic stores will reopen. Restaurants, hotels and malls won't open until June 1.

Playgrounds and public beaches will remain closed, and travel outside of people’s home region off limits for now. Working hours will be staggered to reduce interaction, and masks will be compulsory on public transport, hair salons and in hospitals, and strongly recommended elsewhere.

High school seniors will restart classes on May 11, followed a week later by the rest of high school and junior high grades. Primary schools and kindergartens will remain closed, and might open on June 1. Children considered at risk will continue studying at home.

BRITAIN

Pubs, Rolls Royce factories, souvenir shops and schools are among the many facilities still closed in Britain, which is about a week or two behind other countries in Europe with regard to the coronavirus pandemic.

With more than 21,000 coronavirus deaths recorded in U.K. hospitals, the government has been careful not to openly consider how to ease the most onerous lockdown measures, currently due to last at least until May 7.

In an early sign of change, however, the National Health Service is starting to restore services put on pause to deal with the pandemic, starting with cancer care and mental health services.

Barry Hatton reported from Lisbon, Portugal. Nicole Winfield in Rome, Derek Gatopoulos and Elena Becatoros in Athens, Greece, David Rising in Berlin, and Pan Pylas in London, contributed to this report.

Damage reported as 5.4-magnitude quake strikes Puerto Rico

May 02, 2020

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A 5.4-magnitude earthquake struck near southern Puerto Rico on Saturday, briefly knocking out power and forcing the relocation of at least 50 families on an island where some people still remain in shelters from previous quakes earlier this year. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake hit at a depth of 5.6 miles (nine kilometers) near the city of Ponce and the towns of Guanica and Guayanilla, where hundreds of homes were destroyed by a quake in early January that killed one person and caused millions of dollars in damage.

The earthquake cracked walls, flung goods off supermarket shelves and caused a second-story balcony to crash in the southern coastal city of Ponce. It occurred amid a two-month lockdown and just hours after the government announced the biggest spike in COVID-19 cases since the first one was reported in March in the U.S. territory.

“This is a crisis on top of another crisis,” said Health Secretary Lorenzo González. Most of the damage was reported in Ponce, where officials were still going neighborhood by neighborhood to assess damage as rescue crews fanned out across the region.

“It's time to cry if you have to cry,” said Ponce Mayor María Meléndez. “We're human beings.” Gov. Wanda Vázquez said the 50 families that have to relocated will not be placed in shelters given concerns about the coronavirus contagion. She also urged Puerto Ricans to stay home even if they want to drive to the island's southern region to help those affected and distribute food as they did earlier this year following the 6.4-magnitude earthquake.

“We're up against an emergency situation, but we can't forget that the most lethal one we have in our hands is COVID-19,” she said as she urged people to wear masks and other protective equipment even if they have to evacuate damaged buildings. “If we forget these, the result is going to be worse.”

Meanwhile, in Guánica, Mayor Santos Seda told The Associated Press that no major damage has been reported so far, but noted that between five to 10 people remain in a shelter since the 6.4-magnitude quake that hit in January.

“Thank God everyone is OK,” he said. “The infrastructure is already weak.” Several aftershocks hit Puerto Rico's southern region, including a 4.9-magnitude one. Víctor Huérfano, director of Puerto Rico’s Seismic Network, said in a phone interview that while it's understandable many people are afraid and surprised by the most recent earthquake, it’s not unusual given the seismic activity that began in the region in late December.

“In the long run, it's decreasing, but you can have peaks,” he said, adding that he expects strong aftershocks to continue. Nerves are already frayed in many parts of the island as Puerto Rico continues to recover from Hurricane Maria, a string of strong earthquakes and the coronavirus. Silvestre Alicea, a 67-year-old man who moved back to Puerto Rico from New York upon retiring, lost his home in January's earthquake and is still living with his sister in Guanica.

“This is unreal,” he said, adding that some neighbors have left the area to stay with relatives elsewhere and that many, including a security guard who worked all night, are now sitting nervously in their balconies. “He hasn't slept.”

Alicea, however, said he decided to knock down a couple of breadfruits from a nearby tree as the aftershocks continue: “I'm taking it easy. There's nothing else you can do.”