ROME — Sweeping travel bans cascaded around the globe Thursday, walling off countries and even entire continents, keeping people inside their homes, and slowing the engines of commerce to stem the coronavirus pandemic. Markets collapsed with the growing realization that there would be no fast end to the uncertainty.
After weeks downplaying the virus, U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement of strict rules barring most Europeans from entry came as a shock across the Atlantic. But within hours, even the European Union’s passport-free travel came into question, with guards in places that had been without borders for more than a decade and airports shut down.
The head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Robert Redfield, noted that the vast majority of new cases of the COVID-19 illness are linked to Europe, which he called “the new China.” Deaths in Italy topped 1,000, with more than 15,000 testing positive.
But Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, acknowledged that the United States was lagging other countries in testing for the virus to learn how widespread it really is.
“It is a failing, let’s admit it,” he told lawmakers.
The European Union quickly slammed Trump’s “unilateral” decision, declaring the virus a “global crisis, not limited to any continent and it requires cooperation.”
The virus detected three months ago in China has produced crippling outbreaks in Asia, Europe and the Middle East, ignited global financial panic and in the last week has seen dizzying developments erupt by the hour. European soccer leagues, American basketball and baseball games, school terms for millions of students, weddings, baptisms, funerals, nightlife, culture high and low — all fell by the wayside with a swiftness that was becoming increasingly difficult to grasp.
Britain Prime Minister Boris Johnson, whose country was spared the U.S. travel ban, called the pandemic “the worst public health crisis for a generation” and said “many more families are going to lose loved ones before their time.”
But amid the fears, it’s often easy to forget that many people have recovered from COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. Most patients have only mild or moderate symptoms, such as a fever or cold, though symptoms can be severe, including pneumonia, especially in older adults and people with health problems.
On Thursday, the illness edged closer to the world’s power centers: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced he was self-isolating at home because his wife showed flu-like symptoms after her return from Britain; she was later diagnosed with COVID-19. Meanwhile, the Brazilian president’s communications director tested positive just days after meeting with Trump at Mar-a-Lago.
Trump, though, has no immediate plans to be tested or go into self-quarantine, the White House said. “Both the President and Vice President had almost no interactions with the individual who tested positive and do not require being tested at this time,” White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said in a statement Thursday.
Developments in just one 24-hour period included an official designation of “pandemic” from the World Health Organization, the dramatic halt to much travel between the United States and 26 European countries, and infections being announced in rapid-fire pace by Hollywood celebrities, sports stars and political leaders as well as ordinary people on cruise ships. In Italy’s Lombardy region, the virus’ European epicenter, hospitals were overwhelmed with both the sick and the dead.
Across the board, European markets closed on one of their worst days in history, unswayed by new stimulus measures from the European Central Bank to buy up 120 billion euros ($132 billion) in bonds.
More than 127,000 people in more than 110 countries have been infected. The vast majority are in just four countries: China and South Korea — where new cases are declining — and Iran and Italy, where they are not.
More than 4,700 people have died worldwide.
Around the world, nursing homes emptied of visitors to protect the elderly.
In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency and said the state would ban all gatherings of 500 or more people, while in California, the governor advised officials to cancel any gatherings of more than 250 people, as well as smaller meetings where people must be closer than 6 feet.
Congress shut the U.S. Capitol and House and Senate office buildings to the public until April 1, the White House canceled tours and the Supreme Court will be closed to the public starting Friday.
In Italy, new restrictions closed restaurants, cafes and retail shops Thursday after the prime minister imposed a nationwide lockdown on personal movement.
Ireland, Denmark, Norway, Lithuania Algeria and Slovakia joined the growing list of countries shutting down their school systems, and Europe’s most successful soccer team, Real Madrid, put all its players into quarantine after one tested positive.
Even remote Mount Everest closed for business. Chinese mountaineering officials canceled spring climbs from their side of the mountain, while on the other side in Nepal, operators said cancellations were pouring in.
Europeans were adjusting to the American travel restrictions, which hit some of the world’s most heavily traveled routes and threw travel plans into chaos.
Britain and Ireland were exempt, despite imposing far fewer restrictions in response to the virus than many EU countries, raising questions about the coherence of the U.S. policy. Trump accused Europe of not acting quickly enough to address the “foreign virus” and claimed that U.S. clusters were “seeded” by European travelers.
Across the U.S., where cases now number more than 1,300, a sense of urgency was pervasive.
Schools emptied of students and workplace cubicles went vacant. Major League Baseball canceled spring training and postponed the season for at least two weeks. St. Patrick’s Day celebrations were called off across the U.S. and Ireland.
In New York, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Carnegie Hall and the Metropolitan Opera shuttered, while Broadway theaters also were to go dark. TV shows taped without audiences, rush-hour crowds in New York subway cars disappeared and families hunkered down, wondering what would come next.
“If we avoid each other and listen to the scientists, maybe in a few weeks it will be better,” said Koloud “Kay” Tarapolsi of Redmond, Washington, who has two children whose schools closed Thursday.