For fear of a new covid wave, caused by young people and the contagious delta variant, Spanish regional authorities have decided to impose additional measures. Closing nightlife and accelerated vaccination are just a few examples.
At the end of last week, the incidence of the number of infections per 100,000 inhabitants rose extremely fast. On June 27, Spain registered 95 cases per 100,000 inhabitants and by July 2 this number had increased to 152.8 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. With these figures, Spain is again qualified as a high-risk country.
The advance of new cases, especially among teenagers and twenty-somethings, and the presence of the much more contagious delta variant have caused the corona figures to rise explosively in Spain. This led several Spanish regions to roll back easing, postpone it longer or impose new measures. The Spanish news sites La Sexta and RTVE.es report the main measures, as follows.
Andalucia
Although the corona infections are not going well in the southern Spanish region, Cantillana (Seville) is the only municipality in lockdown. The regional government of Andalucia is discussing additional measures that may be introduced this week.
Cantabria curbs nightlife
The number of infections among young people in Cantabria has risen to 1,200 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. This has made the Cantabrian regional government decide to close the nightlife in sixteen municipalities, including the capital Santander. The regional government is considering giving priority to vaccinating young people between the ages of 16 and 30 because they are the main source of infection.
Catalonia to accelerate young people’s vaccinations
The Generalitat of Catalonia already made this decision. Since last week, people aged 16 and older can go for a vaccination. The regional government does not rule out having to take further measures, but is not yet about to restrict nightlife. However, some clubs in the Spanish region decided autonomously to close.
The announced relaxations in Catalonia have been postponed until July 12. The regional government encourages working from home as much as possible.
Extremadura asks judge for perimeter closures
Extremadura takes a different tack. Perimeter blocks have been reinstated in this Spanish region. The regional council requested a closure through the court for the municipalities of Malpartida de Plasencia and Torrejoncillo. There the infections rose to around 1,000 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
Asturias and Navarre preventive testing
Asturias and Navarre have opted for mass and preventive testing of young people. This is to impose a quarantine as soon as possible in the event of a positive result so pressure on care is less. Navarra reported five times as many cases last week as the week before.
Plans from other Spanish regions
Also Castile and León, and Valencia have not ruled out more restrictions in the short term, as figures rise there. Galicia also has plans for this, but the regional government says these are mainly intended for young people. Their reasoning is young people are the main source of infection and have not yet been vaccinated.
