Coronavirus: Venice Carnival closes as Italy
imposes lockdown
23 February 2020
Italian officials have cut short the Venice Carnival as they
try to control what is now the worst outbreak of the
coronavirus in Europe.
Authorities in the Veneto region said the event
would end later on Sunday, two days earlier than
scheduled. Italy has by far the highest number of
coronavirus cases in Europe, with 152. Three people have
died.Italy has imposed strict quarantine restrictions in two
northern "hotspot" regions close to Milan and Venice.
About 50,000 people cannot enter or leave several
towns in Veneto and Lombardy for the next two weeks
without special permission. Even outside the zone, many
businesses and schools have suspended activities. and
sporting events have been cancelled. The BBC's Mark
Lowen described the situation just outside the zone. ln
neighbouring Austria, a train from Venice was stopped at
the Austrian border after it emerged that two passengers
had fever symptoms. Austria's Interior Minister Karl
Nehammer later confirmed to the BBC that the pair tested
negative for coronavirus.
ºAll authorities have acted quickly and with great
caution in this case," said Mr Nehammer in a statement.
"The reporting chain worked without delay." Elsewhere, authorities in South Korea and Iran are battling
to control rising numbers of infections. South Korea has
raised its coronavirus alert to the "highest level".
The new strain of coronavirus, which originated
last year in Hubei province in China, causes a respiratory
disease called Covid-19. China has seen more than
76,000 infections and 2,442 deaths.
What is happening in Italy?
Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced on
Saturday that "extraordinary measures" would come into
force to try to stem the rising number of coronavirus cases.
He said the quarantine restrictions could last for
weeks. Police, and if necessary the armed forces, will have
the authority to ensure the regulations are enforced.
Angelo Borrelli, the head of Italy's Civil Protection
Department, told reporters that 11 O of the confirmed cases
were in Lombardy, with 21 in Veneto with others in EmiliaRomagna and Lazio. Officials reported a third death on
Sunday, an elderly woman from the town of Crema
suffering from cancer. Italian officials say they are still
trying to trace the source of the outbreak.
Universities in Milan have been closed and the
city's mayor, Giuseppe Sala, said schools would also close
their doors while the outbreak continued. "As a precaution I
think that the schools have to be closed in Milan. I will
propose to the president of the region to enlarge the
precaution to the entire metropolitan city area. lt is just a
precautton, we don't want to create parue," he said.
Meanwhile Giorgio Armanì's fashion show, scheduled
to be held (I) Milan (li) Sunday, went
ahead but without any media or buyers present. The show
was livestreamed (lii) its website, lnstagram and
Facebook pages.
Adapted from: https ://www. b be. com/news/world-e u rope51602007
Read the following sentence taken from the text.
"Even outside the zone, many businesses and schools
have suspended activities and sporting events have been
canceled."
All the underlined words are considered Countable nouns. Mark the option in which all the nouns are considered
Uncountable.