Just three months ago, Finland had the European average of Covid-19 infections and deaths per capita, and had managed to contain local outbreaks following some of the continent’s most relaxed restrictions.
But now it is facing a new wave and the government has changed its place.
On Monday, the Finnish government declared a state of emergency due to a sharp increase in cases that have been partially attributed to the spread of new variants.
The country will hold a three-week shutdown on March 8, according to Prime Minister Sanna Marin.
In a statement, the government said:
“The number and incidence of Covid-19 cases in Finland have increased very rapidly since early February 2021. The number of infections caused by new virus variants has clearly increased, which may further accelerate the epidemic. and cause significant stress in hospitals and capacity for care if we cannot reduce the number of infections ”.
Stricter restrictions were already introduced in seven hospital districts last Thursday, including in the capital, Helsinki.
On the other side of the border Norway, officials are also tightening restrictions due to an increase in cases in the capital that Oslo City Council called “a consequence of the importation of mutated coronavirus variants.”
The new virus variants spread faster than the previous variants, “Oslo City Councilor Raymond Johansen said in a statement on Sunday.
“This means we now need to strengthen infection control measures in line with the recommendations of national health authorities.
From Tuesday to March 15, new measures in Oslo include: the closure of all restaurants except takeaway services; and close all stores except pharmacies and grocery and liquor stores.
Starting Monday, Oslo students attending upper secondary school will stay home and on Wednesday, all schools will operate with a combination of traditional and virtual learning.
The council added that the mass test of students with saliva samples is being introduced from March 8 and the increase in tests for all teachers.