Czech Republic coronavirus update

Here’s the latest update on the Coronavirus outbreak in the Czech Republic. Things are happening quickly, as they are in the U.S. and other countries around the globe.
 
Since my last update on March 9th, confirmed cases have gone from 29 to 32 the next day to 94 as of last night (March 11th).  This is expected, given how contagious the virus is and, as I mentioned in my last post, the return of so many Czech citizens and residents from Italy, one of the most highly affected areas, over the weekend. As I also mentioned at that time, the government had begun to take measures designed to curb the spread in an attempt to prevent what has happened in Italy.

school closings and other new measures

Since then, more measures have been taken. On Tuesday, it was announced that all schools would close from the following day through the beginning of April, and events with more than 100 attendees were cancelled. Yesterday, the government announced that all museums and galleries would close, followed by an announcement that castles and other historic sites would also close.

Those measures would not curtail a trip here if you were willing to travel, as most sites are viewed from the outside anyway. However, there is talk of closing the border if cases spike (I don’t know what number would be the trigger), and that, obviously, would curtail your travel. 
 
This was before President Trump’s announcement on the evening of March 11th that travel from Europe would be banned.  This was later clarified by the Department of Homeland Security to say that only travel from Schengen countries would be banned (the Czech Republic IS a Schengen country), but U.S. citizens are excluded from this, it seems.  I would expect more clarification from the U.S. side in the coming days, so this is by no means meant to be definitive.  I am going on news reports only.
 
So, everything is in flux.  However, as I mentioned at the beginning, this is intended to prevent a bad situation and to prevent the healthcare system from getting overwhelmed. Hopefully these measures will be effective, and perhaps by May or June, when most people visit here, the Coronavirus outbreak might be contained to the point where normal travel is possible. 
 
We will have to see and will hope for the best!  The main thing, as always, is to hope that you and your families (and me, too!) will be healthy and safe.  Please take good care, and keep checking here for updates.  Feel free to contact me if you have questions.

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