Following the World Health Organization's (WHO) declaration of the novel coronavirus as a pandemic, European nations braced for stricter measures and massive changes to battle the CoVID-19 strain.
Italy Closes Most Shops
Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced on Wednesday that multiple shops and buildings across the country will be shuttered as part of the plan to prevent further CoVID-19 infections.
Among the establishments that will be closed are hairdresser shops, bars, and even company departments that are not in the urgent units, BBC reported. All shops will be shut down temporarily except pharmaceuticals and food establishments.
The new draconian measures came days after the government decided to extend the lockdown throughout the entire country. Initially, the lockdown was imposed on northern Italy.
The closure of shops will begin Thursday and should end March 25, depending on the severity of new coronavirus cases.
As of late Wednesday, the country confirmed a total of 827 deaths and over 12,000 coronavirus cases.
Merkel's CoVID-19 Estimates Slammed by Wall Street
In an op-ed for Forbes, business senior contributor Kenneth Rapoza wrote that some people on Wall Street called German Chancellor Angela Merkel's statements on her country's potential coronavirus infections "irresponsible."
Merkel said on Wednesday that she is expecting up to 70 percent of the entire German population to be infected with the fast-spreading disease. Rapoza said that if Merkel's estimates were put into real-time population data, up to 55.2 million German nationals will contract the CoVID-19 strain.
Milan Scientists Believe Italy's Outbreak may have Come from Germany
Experts initially suggested that the massive coronavirus outbreak in Italy came from China, the CoVID-19 strain's origin country. However, a team of scientists in Milan said earlier assumptions may be wrong.
According to Reuters, the Milan team has yet to identify Lombardy's "patient zero" but they traced the Italian genetic sequencing of the coronavirus to a case that first emerged in Germany earlier in January.
Team leader of the research group at Milan Sacco hospital's infectious-diseases department Massimo Galli explained that the closest sequence they found in Italy was that of a coronavirus-infected patient in Munich.
It remains to be seen whether the Milan team's findings are true as the search for patient zero continues.
U.K. Action Plan Focuses On 'Social Distancing'
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to push through with a coronavirus action plan that will focus on "social distancing" among Britons as the coronavirus continues to spread across the European Union.
According to The Guardian, Johnson is expected to attend a meeting lunchtime Thursday to implement the necessary steps for moving the country from the "contain" to "delay" phase.
Once Johnson stamps on the plan, school closures will be announced, as well as the urging of citizens to work from home. It is also likely that crowd-gathering events will be canceled or at least postponed until further notice.
UK Hits Largest Infection Toll in One Day
The British Department of Health confirmed that as of Tuesday, there were 83 new coronavirus cases in Britain, with 387 of the patients residing in England.
27,476 people have been tested for potential CoVID-19 infection and there have been eight deaths in the country. There are 36 in Scotland, 19 in Wales, and 18 in Northern Ireland. The current infection toll in the United Kingdom is now at 460.
London has the highest number of cases in all of England, with 104 confirmed CoVID-19 patients.
Spain Shutters Madrid Museums
Meanwhile, Spain closed all of Madrid's state-run museums as part of the efforts to prevent CoVID-19 spreading. Among the most popular museums that were closed are the Reina Sofia and the Prado.
The Spanish Culture Ministry confirmed in a tweet that the museums will be closed starting Thursday until further notice regarding the resumption of usual operations.
Madrid has been in the center of Spain's efforts to contain the coronavirus. Schools closed earlier this week for 15 days and multiple events were canceled. It remains to be seen whether travel restrictions will be placed in the coming days.
Spain has a total of 1,024 coronavirus cases as of Tuesday.
