The Albanian Deputy Minister of Health Mira Rakacolli has said that currently, a total lockdown due to COVID-19 is not foreseen.
In an interview with the media last night, Rakacolli said that while the number of infected hs increased significantly in recent weeks, the measures that will be taken by the government will be “well thought out”.
“We do not want to shut down completely as we did at the beginning. Neither we, nor the citizens want this,’ she said.
She added that the increased number of infections is due to the fact that citizens are not implementing the correct precautions.
“It’s a worrying situation because the numbers are growing. This situation has to do with the behaviour of the virus in this autumn-winter season but it also has to do with the fact that citizens are not respecting the measures.”
She said that bars and cafes are being monitored and no decision had been taken whether to close them. The Deputy Minister urged people not to spend long periods of time in these kinds of places.
Lastly, she said that the increase in numbers is due to a combination of factors including people not wearing masks correctly or at all, not social distancing, and spending long periods of times in restaurants and bars.
The head of the National Emergency Department, Skender Brataj said that the number of cases in Tirana has increased significantly and that the situation is out of control.
Speaking to News24, he said that the government is likely to take restrictive measures, especially in the capital.
“The infection has spread to a very large extend. There will be measures because we must limit the number of people that are dying. If the numbers cannot be controlled, measures must be taken,” he said.
Brataj echoed the Deputy Minister and said the reason for the increase is people spending hours in bars and cafes without wearing masks.
“Restaurants and cafes have become a haven for not wearing a mask, not keeping distance, and not limiting infection.”
There are currently over 5300 known active cases of COVID-19 in Tirana. But as testing remains at the lowest rate in Europe, we do not know the real number.
While lockdown seems unlikely, it is possible that we can expect restrictions in the coming week that will increase if the situation does not improve.
