Argentina announces strict coronavirus lockdown amid case surge

Businesses, schools and social activities will be suspended from Saturday until May 31 as new COVID infections surge.

Argentina will go into strict lockdown starting this weekend, for the first time this year after more than 35,000 coronavirus infections were reported for the third straight day and the death toll soared. The measures will last from Saturday until May 31, and will limit circulation and suspend social, business, educational, religious and sporting activities. Workers with essential jobs will be exempt from the measures. “We are living the worst moment since the pandemic began,” President Alberto Fernandez said in a message broadcast by the national TV channel on Thursday. “We are seeing the highest numbers of cases and deaths. We must take this critical situation seriously and not naturalise so much tragedy.”