Europe on Lockdown From COVID-19

Empty toilet paper shelves, empty seats at restaurants, empty desks in schools.

These emerging iconic coronavirus images have become commonplace in Europe as the continent begins nationwide lockdowns amid a rising number of COVID-19 cases. On March 14, the World Health Organization called Europe the “epicenter” of the pandemic.

Germany

In a televised press conference on the evening of March 16, Chancellor Angela Merkel declared a national shutdown, calling on nonessential businesses to close their doors and people to limit nonessential social contact. Schools have been closed since March 16. The federal government also imposed border controls with France, Switzerland, Austria, Denmark and Luxembourg, and this week halted flights from China and Iran. The car manufacturer Volkswagen has announced a partial halt in production.

Germany, however, also has been a source of good news. A German vaccine-maker, CureVac, believes it is on the cusp of developing a vaccine. U.S. President Donald Trump offered financial support to the company, with news reports suggesting that Trump offered to buy it out for exclusive American use. Experiments are set to begin in June or July.

Berlin resident Lukas Yair Lehmann, a production coordinator, wrote on his Facebook page: “Every day a new measure against the virus limiting our daily life is introduced. There is a limit to each measure but yet, if the development of the vaccine takes at least a year, these measures might continue. Personally, I am working today from home. Our company gave us tools for remote work. I am glad to have this possibility. Other friends of mine need to work from their office or from home without full access to their needed work materials. The streets at Kurfürstendamm (a major retail thoroughfare) are empty in the mornings.”

United Kingdom

As of press time, schools, shops, restaurants and cafes remained open. Hospital care has been reinforced and people are advised to limit socializing. Anyone older than 70 or showing symptoms of the virus has been advised to self-isolate for a few weeks.

“Britain is definitely taking a different approach,” said Agnieszka Kolek, a London resident, via Whatsapp. “A lot of people are very critical of it. My presumption is that probably, economically, they can’t afford to shut everything down and maybe they’re thinking that will create more chaos and unrest, so they’re pushing people through it, one step at a time. It is a dynamic situation.”

Kolek added she’d noticed fewer people walking on the streets but more people cycling and that shops and restaurants were still being patronized. Amid a warning from virus experts at Imperial College London that the United Kingdom’s “flatten the curve” approach could lead to some 260,000 deaths, the government continually is mulling and advising even tighter measures.

France

France has declared a national lockdown, with Paris’ popular café and retail culture effectively on hold, although on March 15, reports showed Parisians ignoring the restrictions and posting selfies hanging out in parks and markets.

Municipal elections on March 15 saw a low voter turnout of around 56% amid restrictions. The round-off election has been postponed as nonessential movement was banned on March 16.

On March 14, the World Health Organization called Europe the “epicenter” of the pandemic.

“I think we have to take very harsh measures and be very careful,” Philippe Karsenty, a Parisian businessman and pro-Israel activist living in the Paris suburbs. His elementary and high school aged children are now being home-schooled but he’s looking at it as an opportunity. “You can stay at home with their kids and get to know them better,” he said.

His wife is temporarily shutting down her hospitality business and Karsenty foresees that families and businesses without financial backup will likely face hard times. “It looks like war but there is no one trying to kill us except an invisible enemy,” he said. “It’s kind of a nightmare but it’s a nightmare which is bearable.”

Netherlands

On March 15, the Netherlands announced a shutdown but with more liberal measures allowing social contact. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced on March 16 that officials will seek to contain the spread of the disease amid an inevitable expansion that could strain the health care system. This was the first public address by a Dutch prime minister in 40 years.

Galit Bauer, an Israeli based in Amsterdam and co-founder of the Holiday Sitters, an online baby-sitter booking service, is particularly concerned about the school closures. She has found it difficult to run a home office while looking after a toddler and a 10-year-old.

“I don’t have anything to do with my kids: libraries, indoor playgrounds, gyms are closed,” she said.

So far she has not noticed a spike in babysitter bookings despite more families needing caregivers for their children. “People are afraid to leave their kids,” she said. “People will realize in a day or two that for them to survive mentally, not only financially — even if you work from home — you cannot be with your kids unless your baby sleeps all day.”

Locals, she said, continue to ride their bikes along the Amsterdam canals. Most striking to her were the lines around the block for Amsterdam’s famed “coffee shops” — shops that sell weed legally.

Other European countries

As their death tolls top the list, Italy and Spain have taken the strictest measures, with most citizens required to self-quarantine. On March 16, Spain closed its land borders except to Spanish nationals and commercial goods. Violators will be fined. According to The Guardian, Belgium, Bulgaria, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Monaco, Romania and Switzerland have closed or drastically limited leisure, sport and recreational activities and services while advising social distancing measures. Sweden has not yet closed restaurants, cafes and bars or schools below the high school level.

As of press time, according to the European Center for Disease Control, the following is an up-to-date list of COVID-19 cases across Europe.

Europe: Italy (27,980), Spain (9,191), France (6,633), Germany (6,012), Switzerland (2,200), United Kingdom (1,543), Netherlands (1,413), Norway (1,169), Sweden (1,121), Belgium (1,085), Austria (1,016), Denmark (932), Greece (352), Czech Republic (344), Portugal (331), Finland (272), Slovenia (253), Ireland (223), Estonia (205), Iceland (199), Romania (184), Poland (177), San Marino (102), Russia (93), Slovakia (84), Luxembourg (81), Bulgaria (62), Serbia (57), Croatia (56), Armenia (52), Albania (51), Hungary (50), Turkey (47), Cyprus (40), Belarus (36), Latvia (36), Georgia (33), Malta (30), Moldova (29), Bosnia and Herzegovina (21), Azerbaijan (19), North Macedonia (19), Lithuania (17), Andorra (14), Monaco (9), Liechtenstein (7), Ukraine (5), Kosovo (2) and Holy See (1).

Orit Arfa is an Israeli-America journalist and author based in Berlin. Sources interviewed for this story are friends, acquaintances or associates of the reporter.