700 Km Traffic Jam As Second COVID-19 Lockdown Begins

Oct 31, 2020, 13:19 IST

France entered a new lockdown on Friday as it want to stop the spread of coronavirus. President Emmanuel Macron said the country risked being "overwhelmed by a second wave that no doubt will be harder than the first". Lockdown restrictions came into effect from the midnight of Friday. People should not step out except for essential work or medical reasons. It is reported that Parisians have left the city to spend lockdown in the countryside. According to the reports, on Thursday evening, the traffic jams stretched to nearly 700 kilometres (435 miles) in the region around Paris.

Incredible traffic jam in Paris as people try to leave the city before 9 pm curfew and before confinement begins at midnight. Traffic is barely moving in every direction as far as the eye can see. Lots of honking and frustrated drivers. pic.twitter.com/6Zn2HCxuPl

— Michael E. Webber (@MichaelEWebber) October 29, 2020

In the wake of the lockdown, people going out for morning walk and exercise, therefore, should choose areas within a kilometre from home, except for medical needs and other essentials, the officials said. Restaurants and cafes will be closed. People are worried that the they have been confined to their homes in the lockdown that was imposed earlier and now again they are going to face the same situation.

Students who have been stuck in France are worried about the new lockdown. An average of 1,370 people die every day in European countries due to coronavirus. According to the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, less than 3% of people should test positive. But Spain has a positivity rate of 11%, France reported 18%, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic reported 26%.

European countries such as Italy, Spain, France and Britain have been affected severely with coronavirus. However, analysts say that the second wave began when European countries relaxed their rules, relaxed their procedures, and failed to properly implement programs such as tracking, tracing and testing of patients.