Virus expands grip in many areas, as US nears 100,000 deaths

May 27, 2020

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea reported its highest number of new coronavirus infections in weeks on Wednesday and India reported another record single-day jump of more than 6,000 cases, as the pandemic expanded its grip across much of the globe.

Still, optimism over reopening economies from business shutdowns to fight the virus spurred a rally on Wall Street, even as the official U.S. death toll approached 100,000. Outbreaks are still climbing in much of the Americas, while many countries in Asia and much of Europe are making steady progress in containing the deadliest pandemic in a century.

New Zealand's Ministry of Health reported Wednesday that there were no COVID-19 patients under treatment in hospitals. The nation took aggressive and early action to stop transmissions and has reported only 21 deaths. It has 21 active cases out of 1,504 confirmed and probable ones.

In South Korea, 40 newly confirmed cases — the biggest daily jump in nearly 50 days — raised alarm as millions of children were returning to school. All but four of the new cases were in the densely populated Seoul region, where officials are scrambling to stop transmissions linked to nightclubs, karaoke rooms and an e-commerce warehouse. South Korea has reported 269 deaths and 11,265 cases, after managing to contain a severe earlier outbreak.

Authorities were testing 3,600 employees of a local e-commerce giant, Coupang, after discovering dozens of coronavirus infections linked to workers at the company’s warehouse near Seoul. India saw another record single-day jump, reporting 6,387 new cases on Wednesday, as the government prepared new guidelines for the next phase of a 2-month-old national lockdown that is due to end on Sunday.

In the Americas, from Mexico to Chile, health officials were reporting surging coronavirus cases and overwhelmed hospitals. Mexico’s health department reported 501 deaths from the coronavirus on Tuesday, a new one-day high, and 3,455 more infections. Its daily death toll is approaching that of the U.S., at about 620. Brazil currently leads in daily deaths with more than 800.

Authorities in Chile said their intensive care units were near full capacity, with about 4,000 new cases being confirmed daily. “This is an extraordinarily difficult time,” Health Minister Jaime Mañalich said.

A U.S. travel ban took effect Tuesday for foreigners coming from Brazil, where President Jair Bolsonaro has raged against state and local leaders enforcing stay-at-home measures despite warnings that the outbreak is deepening.

Brazil has about 375,000 coronavirus infections — second only to the 1.6 million cases in the U.S. — and has counted over 23,000 deaths, but many fear Brazil’s true toll is much higher. Worldwide, the virus has infected nearly 5.6 million people and killed over 350,000, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. Europe has recorded about 170,000 deaths, while the U.S. has reported more than 98,900 in a span of less than four months, more than the number of Americans killed in the Vietnam and Korean wars combined.

The true death toll is widely believed to be significantly higher, with experts saying many victims died of the virus without ever being tested for it. President Donald Trump several months ago likened the coronavirus to the flu and dismissed worries that it could lead to so many deaths. The administration’s leading scientists have since warned that as many as 240,000 could die from the virus.

The White House said Tuesday that the president was committed to holding a Fourth of July celebration in the nation’s capital even as local officials warned that the region — one of the hardest hit by the coronavirus — will not be ready to hold a major event.

“Given the number of individuals that would try to attend such an event, logistically such an event would be impossible to put on safely,” lawmakers from the city wrote in a statement. Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said Tuesday that the city won’t be issuing any permits for large gatherings in the immediate future. The capital is still under a stay-at-home order, with plans to shift to Phase One of its reopening this weekend.

Reopenings are pushing ahead even as more than a dozen states are still seeing increasing numbers of new cases. News of reopenings was cheered on Wall Street, with the S&P 500 closing 1.2% higher, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining nearly 530 points, or 2.2%.

Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak announced Tuesday night that casinos can reopen on June 4, welcoming tourists to the gambling mecca of Las Vegas. Sisolak shuttered the casinos, which draw millions of tourists and power the state economy, 10 weeks ago to help stop the spread of the coronavirus.

In New York, the state with the highest death toll from the virus, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said it was time to focus on relaunching New York City’s moribund economy. After ringing open the New York Stock Exchange's trading floor for the first time in two months, he laid out a plan that included accelerating major infrastructure projects and tackling transmission of the virus in the hardest-hit neighborhoods.

Cuomo reported a one-day total of 73 deaths on Tuesday, the lowest figure in months. “In this absurd new reality, that is good news,” he said.

Kurtenbach reported from Bangkok. Associated Press journalists around the world contributed to this report.

Sweden steadfast in strategy as virus toll continues rising

May 26, 2020

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Sweden's government defended its response to the COVID-19 global pandemic on Tuesday despite the Scandinavian country now reporting one of the highest mortality rates in the world with 4,125 fatalities, or about 40 deaths per 100,000 people.

“Transmission is slowing down, the treatment of COVID-19 patients in intensive care is decreasing significantly, and the rising death toll curve has been flattened,” Foreign Minister Ann Linde told foreign correspondents at a briefing in Stockholm. “There is no full lockdown of Sweden, but many parts of the Swedish society have shut down.”

More than 76,000 people have been made redundant since the outbreak of the disease and unemployment, which now stands at 7.9%, is expected to climb higher. Sweden took a relatively soft approach to fighting the coronavirus, one that attracted international attention. Large gatherings were banned, but restaurants and schools for younger children have stayed open. The government has urged social distancing, and Swedes have largely complied.

But opponents to the government’s strategy gained an influential voice this week after the country’s former state epidemiologist, Annika Linde, expressed doubt about the strategy adopted by the Swedish health authority. She said that in retrospect she believes an early lockdown could have saved lives.

“Most likely, we would still be a bit worse off (than other Nordic countries), but better off than we are now, and we would possibly have gained time to prepare the strategy to protect the elderly,” she told The Associated Press in a phone interview on Monday.

Sweden’s epidemiologist from 2005 to 2013, Linde headed the country’s response to swine flu and SARS and says she felt provoked by comments from a leading member of the health agency claiming Sweden’s strategy was the best in the world, irrespective of the number of deaths.

“I felt this can’t go on,” she told the AP. “Such a denial may prevent us from acting rationally.” Sweden’s health policy is traditionally based on recommendations issued by medical authorities and followed by the political leadership. But as the death toll mounts, Linde believes elected officials would have been more cautious in risking the lives of citizens.

“In retrospect, I think it would have been worthwhile trying the strategy of Denmark, Norway and Iceland and Finland,” she said. Yet for the Swedish government, it’s still too early to tell what measures have worked and which have failed.

“This is not a sprint, it’s a marathon,” Foreign Minister Ann Linde said. “It’s a good thing that many experts are saying what they think. We have freedom of speech in Sweden,” when asked about Annika Linde’s remarks.

The foreign minister said that the government wouldn't hesitate to change Sweden's policy "if we think that will be necessary.”

Risks complicate reopenings as WHO warns 1st wave not over

May 26, 2020

BANGKOK (AP) — The risks of reigniting coronavirus outbreaks are complicating efforts to fend off further misery for the many millions who have lost jobs, with a top health expert warning that the world is still in the midst of a “first wave” of the pandemic.

“Right now, we're not in the second wave. We're right in the middle of the first wave globally," said Dr. Mike Ryan, a World Health Organization executive director. “We're still very much in a phase where the disease is actually on the way up,” Ryan told reporters, pointing to South America, South Asia and other areas where the number of infections is still on the rise.

Mindful of the risks, Americans settled for small processions and online tributes instead of parades Monday as they observed Memorial Day in the shadow of the pandemic. A U.S. travel ban was due to take effect Tuesday for foreigners coming from Brazil, where the virus is raging through communities with no signs of abating. The ban, originally to take effect Thursday, was moved up. It does not apply to U.S. citizens.

Underscoring the challenge of containing outbreaks of a virus for which there is not yet a vaccine or proven treatment, India reported a record single-day jump in new cases for the seventh straight day. The country reported 6,535 new infections on Tuesday, raising its total to 145,380, including 4,167 deaths.

Most of India's cases are concentrated in the western states of Maharashtra, home to the financial hub Mumbai, and Gujarat. The numbers have also climbed in some of India’s poorest states in the east as migrant workers stranded by lockdowns have returned to their native villages from India’s largest cities.

India has nonetheless been easing restrictions. Domestic flights resumed on Monday after a two-month hiatus, though at only a fraction of normal traffic levels. Australia’s prime minister said that international travel could resume with New Zealand before Australians are allowed to fly interstate if cautious state leaders refuse to reopen their borders.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he spoke with his New Zealand counterpart, Jacinda Ardern, on Tuesday about resuming regular travel between the near-neighbors, which have shared similar success in slowing the coronavirus spread, though not eliminating new cases altogether.

Tests by a U.S. biotechnology company, Novavax, have begun in Australia with hopes of releasing a proven vaccine this year. A Novavax executive said 131 volunteers were getting injections in the first phase of the trial to test the vaccine's safety and effectiveness.

Novovax expects the results of the Australian trial to be known in July. About a dozen experimental vaccines are in early stages of testing or poised to start, and it’s not clear whether any will prove safe and effective. But they use different methods and technologies, increasing the odds that one might succeed.

“We are in parallel making doses, making vaccine in anticipation that we’ll be able to show it’s working and be able to start deploying it by the end of this year,” Novovax's research chief, Dr. Gregory Glenn, told a virtual news conference in Melbourne, Australia, from the company's headquarters in Maryland.

Some restrictions on public gatherings, shorter hours for many businesses and other precautions are still in place in most countries. South Korea on Tuesday began requiring people to wear masks on public transit and while using taxis. The country, once a major epicenter of outbreaks, is tracing dozens of infections linked to nightclubs and other entertainment venues as it prepares for 2.4 million students to return to school on Wednesday.

People in South Korea, like in much of Asia, have generally been wearing masks in public settings anyway, without reports of any major disruptions. Sri Lankan police warned that those failing to respect social distancing guidelines will be arrested from Tuesday as authorities eased a 24-hour curfew in two main districts including the capital, Colombo. A nationwide curfew remains in effect from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m.

Despite hopes that the so-called “first wave" of the pandemic may be waning, Ryan, the WHO official, warned that future “spikes" of outbreaks may mean the first wave is not over. With infections surging in South America, the WHO warned Brazil's leaders against reopening its economy before it can perform enough testing to control the spread of the pandemic.

“Intense" transmission rates mean Brazil should retain some stay-at-home measures despite the economic hardships, Ryan told reporters. “In these kind of circumstances, there may be no alternative,” he said. “You must continue to do everything you can.”

The smaller, more subdued Memorial Day ceremonies in the U.S. honored the nation’s military dead and also remembered those lost to the virus. President Donald Trump laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Virginia, while presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, wearing a black mask, made his first public appearance in two months to lay a wreath at a cemetery near his home.

On the weekend marking the unofficial start of summer, authorities warned people heading to beaches, parks or backyard barbecues to heed social-distancing rules to avoid a resurgence of the disease that has infected 5.4 million people worldwide and killed over 345,000, including nearly 100,000 Americans, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

Veterans, along with nursing home residents, have made up a significant portion of those who died in the U.S. outbreak, and Memorial Day commemorations were canceled or toned down across the country.

“This is our freedom. This is our history. It’s what they fought for,” said Frank Groblebe as he and his wife placed lilacs on several graves at Mountview Cemetery in Billings, Montana. They included the graves of his mother and his father, who served in the Philippines as a Navy Seabee during World War II.

“Anything that shows respect for it is all right with me,” Groblebe said, fighting back tears.

UK leader's aide says he won't quit over lockdown road trip

May 25, 2020

LONDON (AP) — British leader Boris Johnson’s powerful chief aide insisted Monday that he wouldn't resign for driving the length of England while the country was under strict lockdown — a trip he made without informing the prime minister first.

The government is facing a tide of anger from politicians and the public over the revelation that Dominic Cummings traveled more than 250 miles (400 kilometers) from London to his parents' home in Durham, northeast England at the end of March.

Cummings says he traveled so that extended family could care for his 4-year-old son if he and his wife, who had suspected coronavirus, both fell ill. He said the three of them stayed in isolation in a building on his father's farm.

His trip came after the government imposed a strict “stay home” order, and Cummings is being accused of flouting the rules he expected the rest of the country to follow. Many Britons have taken to social media and radio phone-ins to recount how the lockdown had prevented them from visiting elderly relatives, comforting dying friends or attending the funerals of loved ones.

In a televised news conference in the garden of 10 Downing St. — all but unheard of for an unelected adviser — Cummings tried to quash the controversy with a detailed but unrepentant account of his movements.

Cummings insisted that “the rules … allowed me to exercise my judgment” and that his need to ensure childcare for his son was an “exceptional situation.” The government's stay-at-home rules, introduced March 23, said people with children should comply ”to the best of your ability." Deputy Chief Medical Officer Jenny Harries later said that “if you have adults who are unable to look after a small child, that is an exceptional circumstance.” She said in that case people without child care or family support should contact their local authority for help — something Cummings didn't do.

“I don’t regret what I did,” Cummings said, though he acknowledged that “reasonable people” might disagree with his actions. Cummings said he didn't tell the prime minister, who had just been diagnosed with COVID-19, about his decision to leave London, because “he was ill himself and he had huge problems to deal with.”

“Arguably this was a mistake," Cummings said. Johnson has stood by Cummings, saying he “followed the instincts of every father and every parent.” “Of course I do regret the confusion and the anger and the pain that people feel,” Johnson said at the government's daily news briefing. “That’s why I wanted people to understand exactly what had happened.”

A self-styled political disrupter who disdains the media and civil service, the 48-year-old Cummings has been essential to Johnson’s rise to power. He was one of the architects of the successful campaign to take Britain out of the European Union, and orchestrated Brexit champion Johnson’s thumping election victory in December.

Five months on from that triumph, Johnson’s government is facing criticism for its response to a pandemic that has hit Britain harder than any other European country. Britain’s official coronavirus death toll stands at 36,914, the second-highest confirmed total in the world after the United States.

The coronavirus laid low a swath of senior U.K. officials, including Cummings, Health Secretary Matt Hancock and Johnson himself, who spent several days in intensive care at a London hospital in April.

The U.K. is gradually easing its lockdown, initially by allowing more outdoor recreation. The government plans to reopen schools starting on June 1, and Johnson said Monday that the vast majority of shops in England will be able to open two weeks later, as long as they can become “COVID-19 secure.”

Some scientists said Cummings' behavior would make it harder to enforce continued social distancing. Stephen Reicher, a social psychologist who sits on a group advising the government, said “more people are going to die” because the episode would undermine adherence to the lockdown rules.

The opposition Labor Party said the government's message was that there was "one rule for Boris Johnson’s closest adviser, another for everybody else.” Ominously for Johnson, some Conservative lawmakers also expressed unease. Member of Parliament Paul Maynard said the aide’s actions were “a classic case of ‘do as I say, not as I do,’"

The conservative Daily Mail newspaper, usually supportive of Johnson, blared “What planet are they on?” in a headline about Cummings and the prime minister." Cummings, who usually exerts power from the sidelines, looked uncomfortable but didn't admit fault during a live media grilling that lasted more than an hour.

He said that people felt “understandable anger,” but insisted much of it was “based on reports in the media that haven't been true.” However, he confirmed most of the details in media reports of his travels, including the journey to Durham and an April 12 drive to a scenic town half an hour away — taken, Cummings said, to check whether his eyesight, which had been affected by illness, had recovered enough for him to drive.

“I don’t think there is one rule for me and one rule for other people,” he said, insisting he had done what he thought was right at the time. He said he hadn't considered resigning. Asked whether Johnson should consider sacking him, Cummings said: “That’s not for me to decide. It’s up to him to decide.”

World's reaction to US weaves solidarity, calls to change

June 01, 2020

BANGKOK (AP) — Several thousand people marched in New Zealand's largest city on Monday to protest the killing of George Floyd in the U.S. as well as to stand up against police violence and racism in their own country.

Many people around the world have watched with growing unease at the civil unrest in the U.S. after the latest in a series of police killings of black men and women. Floyd died on May 25 in Minneapolis after a white police officer pressed his knee on Floyd’s neck until he stopped breathing. The officer was fired and charged with murder.

The protesters in Auckland marched to the U.S. Consulate, where they kneeled. They held banners with slogans like “I can’t breathe” and “The real virus is racism.” Hundreds more joined the peaceful protests and vigils elsewhere in New Zealand, where Monday was a public holiday.

At a gathering in central London on Sunday, thousands offered support for American demonstrators, chanting "No justice! No peace!" and waving placards with the words “How many more?” In other places, too, demonstrators wove solidarity with the U.S. protesters with messages aimed at local authorities.

In Brazil, hundreds of people protested crimes committed by the police against black people in Rio de Janeiro’s working-class neighborhoods, known as favelas. Police used tear gas to disperse them, with some demonstrators saying “I can’t breathe,” repeating Floyd's own words.

In Canada, an anti-racism protest degenerated into clashes between Montreal police and some demonstrators. Police declared the gathering illegal after they say projectiles were thrown at officers who responded with pepper spray and tear gas. Some windows were smashed and some fires were set.

In authoritarian nations, the unrest became a chance to undermine U.S. criticism of their own situations. Iranian state television repeatedly aired images of the U.S. unrest. Russia said the United States had systemic human rights problems. And state-controlled media in China saw the protests through the prism of American views on Hong Kong's anti-government demonstrations.

North Korea’s official Rodong Sinmun newspaper on Monday reported about the demonstrations, saying that protesters “harshly condemned” a white policeman’s “lawless and brutal murder” of a black citizen. Three large photos from the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Reuters news agency and Agence France-Presse showed protest scenes from recent days in the city where Floyd was killed.

The article said hundreds of protesters gathered in front of the White House chanting “No justice, no peace,” and that demonstrations were occurring in other cities and were expected to grow. It did not make any direct comments about the Trump administration.

World alarmed by violence in US; thousands march in London

June 01, 2020

LONDON (AP) — Nations around the world have watched in horror at the civil unrest in the United States following the death of George Floyd, a black man who died after a white police officer pressed his knee on his neck until he stopped breathing.

Racism-tinged events no longer startle even America’s closest allies, though many have watched coverage of the often-violent protests with growing unease. Burning cars and riot police in the U.S. featured on newspaper front pages around the globe Sunday — bumping news of the COVID-19 pandemic to second-tier status in some places.

Floyd's death on May 25 in Minneapolis was the latest in a series of deaths of black men and women at the hands of police in the U.S. Thousands gathered in central London on Sunday to offer support for American demonstrators. Chanting "No justice! No peace!" and waving placards with the words “How many more?” at Trafalgar Square, the protesters ignored U.K. government rules banning crowds because of the pandemic. Police didn't stop them.

Demonstrators then marched to the U.S. Embassy, where a long line of officers surrounded the building. Several hundred milled around in the street and waved placards. Protesters in Denmark also converged on the U.S. Embassy on Sunday. Participants carried placards with messages such as “Stop Killing Black People.”

The U.S. Embassy in Berlin was the scene of protests on Saturday under the motto: “Justice for George Floyd.” Several hundred more people took to the streets Sunday in the capital’s Kreuzberg area, carrying signs with slogans like “Silence is Violence,” “Hold Cops Accountable,” and “Who Do You Call When Police Murder?” No incidents were reported.

Germany’s top-selling Bild newspaper on Sunday carried the sensational headline “This killer-cop set America ablaze” with an arrow pointing to a photo of now-fired police officer Derek Chauvin, who has been charged with third-degree murder in Floyd’s death, with his knee on Floyd’s neck. The newspaper’s story reported “scenes like out of a civil war."

In Italy, the Corriere della Sera newspaper's senior U.S. correspondent Massimo Gaggi wrote that the reaction to Floyd’s killing was “different” than previous cases of black Americans killed by police and the ensuring violence.

“There are exasperated black movements that no longer preach nonviolent resistance,” Gaggi wrote, noting the Minnesota governor’s warning that “anarchist and white supremacy groups are trying to fuel the chaos.''

In countries with authoritarian governments, state-controlled media have been highlighting the chaos and violence of the U.S. demonstrations, in part to undermine American officials’ criticism of their own nations.

In China, the protests are being viewed through the prism of U.S. government criticism of China's crackdown on anti-government protests in Hong Kong. Hu Xijin, the editor of the state-owned Global Times newspaper, tweeted that U.S. officials can now see protests out their own windows: “I want to ask Speaker Pelosi and Secretary Pompeo: Should Beijing support protests in the U.S., like you glorified rioters in Hong Kong?”

Hua Chunying, a Chinese Foreign ministry spokeswoman, pointed out America's racial unrest by tweeting “I can't breathe,” which Floyd said before his death. In Iran, which has violently put down nationwide demonstrations by killing hundreds, arresting thousands and disrupting internet access to the outside world, state television has repeatedly aired images of the U.S. unrest. One TV anchor discussed “a horrible scene from New York, where police attacked protesters.” Another state TV message accused U.S. police agencies in Washington of “setting fire to cars and attacking protesters,” without offering any evidence.

Russia accused the United States of “systemic problems in the human rights sphere.'' It denounced Floyd's death as the latest in a series of police violence cases against African Americans. “This incident is far from the first in a series of lawless conduct and unjustified violence from U.S. law enforcement,’’ the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. “American police commit such high-profile crimes all too often.’’

There also have been expressions of solidarity with the demonstrators. In Brazil, hundreds of people gathered in front of the Rio de Janeiro state government palace to protest crimes committed by the police against black people in Rio’s working-class neighborhoods, known as favelas.

The protest, called “Black lives matter,” was interrupted when police used tear gas to disperse people. “I can’t breathe”, said some of the demonstrators, alluding to the George Floyd´s death. Protesters called for an end to police operations inside favelas.

In Canada, an anti-racism protest degenerated into clashes between Montreal police and some demonstrators. About three hours after a march that snaked its way through downtown Montreal had ended, police declared the gathering illegal after they say projectiles were thrown at officers who responded with pepper spray and tear gas. Some windows were smashed and some fires were set.

Over the weekend, Lebanese anti-government protesters flooded social media with tweets sympathetic to U.S. protesters, using the hashtag #Americarevolts. That's a play on the slogan for Lebanon’s protest movement — Lebanon revolts — which erupted on Oct. 17 last year. Within 24 hours, the hashtag #Americanrevolts became the No. 1 trending tag in Lebanon.

In another expression of solidarity with American protesters, about 150 people marched through central Jerusalem on Saturday to protest the shooting death by Israeli police of an unarmed, autistic Palestinian man earlier in the day. Israeli police mistakenly suspected that the man, Iyad Halak, was carrying a weapon. When he failed to obey orders to stop, officers opened fire.

Associated Press Writers David Rising in Berlin, Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Frances D'Emilio in Rome, Zeina Karam in Beirut, Tia Goldenberg in Jerusalem, Ken Moritsugu in Beijing, Jari Tanner in Helsinki, Finland, and Jim Heintz in Moscow, contributed to this report.

Italy's seas speak: No tourists or boats mean cleaner water

May 30, 2020

FIUMICINO, Italy (AP) — Pollution from human and agriculture waste spilling into the seas off Rome has decreased 30% during Italy's coronavirus lockdown, preliminary results from a nationwide survey of seawater quality indicate.

Authorities stressed it was too soon to give the lockdown sole credit for the change, saying that shifting sea currents and limited rainfall in April and May also could have been responsible for reduced runoff of livestock and fertilizer waste.

But Marco Lupo, director general of the Lazio region’s environmental agency, hypothesized that the evaporation of tourism starting in March could have reduced the amount of sewage produced by the 30 million tourists who normally visit Rome each year.

In addition, the lockdown meant Italians couldn’t flock to their seaside vacation homes as they normally would in spring, a phenomenon that typically overwhelms local water treatment plants and results in increased pollutants spewing into the seas, Lupo said.

“This year, coastal towns have been much less populated, decreasing the (human-caused pollution) burden” on the water, he told The Associated Press. There’s no indication seas will stay cleaner, since the lockdown is ending and any pollution reduction may be temporary.

But scientists around the world have documented some remarkable ecological changes as a result of travel ceasing, industrial production in many countries grinding to a halt and people staying home. Air pollution is down in some of the world’s smoggiest cities, while wildlife such as coyotes and boars have been seen in urban areas.

Off Italy's coasts, which are popular and occasionally polluted, there are visible effects of the lockdown. With the usually busy Gulf of Naples cleared of pleasure boats, cargo and cruise ships, dolphins usually only seen far out in the Mediterranean flock close to shore. Jellyfish have been spotted in the empty canals of Venice.

During the lockdown, fishermen are pulling in bigger hauls than usual off Rome’s main industrial port at Civitavecchia. In April, for example, fishermen pulled in 60,000 kilograms (132,277 pounds) of fish compared with 52,000 kilograms (114,640 pounds) during the same month last year.

Roberto Arciprete, a marine biologist with Civitavecchia’s local fishing cooperative, hypothesized that the sharp reduction in maritime traffic had resulted in more fish swimming closer to shore. Environment Minister Sergio Costa noted that the coronavirus emergency, while tragic given the loss of life, offered an unprecedented opportunity to create a “photograph” of Italy's seas. Costa on April 15 tasked the Coast Guard and other law enforcement agencies to work with regional environmental authorities to take water samples and monitor and assess changes in the seas off Italy’s 8,000 kilometers (4,971 miles) of coastline.

The results will provide data and a baseline from which the country can reboot industrial production sustainably and create “a new normal that we know is absolutely necessary,” he said. “This can give us a point of departure, actually a point of re-departure,” he said in a statement. “This photograph will become the point of reference for the future controls of the seas, lakes and rivers, so that nature and our country can be better cared for.”

Coast Guard Adm. Vincenzo Leone, who is responsible for the Lazio region, said it was appropriate to seize the moment to determine if an elimination of tourism and boating had a measurable effect on water quality. He described the sampling underway as a “blood test of the sea.”

“There is only one sea and we must protect it,” he said. “So when the sea talks to us, we have to listen to it.”

Nicole Winfield contributed from Rome.