Just three months ago, Finland had the lowest average of infections and deaths per capita by Covid-19 in Europe and managed to contain local outbreaks, while complying with some of the continent’s most relaxed restrictions.
But now it is facing a new wave – and the government has changed course.
On Monday, the Finnish government declared a state of emergency due to a sharp increase in cases that they partially attributed to the spread of new variants.
The country will enter a three-week blockade on March 8, according to Prime Minister Sanna Marin.
In a note, the government said:
“The number and incidence of cases of Covid-19 in Finland has increased very rapidly since the beginning of February 2021. The number of infections caused by new variants of the virus has clearly increased, which can further accelerate the epidemic and put significant pressure in the hospital and in the intensive care capacity if we are not able to reduce the number of infections. ”
The stricter restrictions have already been introduced in seven hospital districts last Thursday, including the capital, Helsinki.
Across the border in Norway, authorities are also tightening restrictions due to a wave of cases in the capital that the Oslo City Council has called “a consequence of the importation of mutant variants of the coronavirus”.
The new variants of the virus spread faster than the previous variants, “Councilman Raymond Johansen said in a statement on Sunday.
“This means that we now have to tighten up infection control measures according to the recommendations of national health authorities.
From Tuesday to March 15, the new measures in Oslo include: closing all restaurants, except take-away services; and closing all stores, except pharmacies and grocery stores / liquor stores.
Starting on Monday, students from Oslo attending high schools will stay at home, and on Wednesday, all schools will operate with a combination of traditional and virtual learning.
The board added that it is introducing mass testing of students with saliva samples as of March 8, and increasing the test for all teachers.