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Update – 25/05/2020

As of the latest update by the Greek authorities yesterday evening, the total number of confirmed Covid-19 diagnosed cases in Greece is 2,878. There were no deaths from the novel coronavirus in the past 24 hours, keeping the death toll at 171. The number of patients treated in intensive care units stands at 19, while 100 people have left the intensive care unit.

EDUCATION

  • Primary schools, preschools and day care facilities will re-open on Monday, June 1st. The school year is extended to late June. Government spokesman, Education Minister and Interior Minister will give a joint briefing Monday afternoon detailing how these facilities will operate.
  • Today universities resume laboratory classes and, for Medicine School students, clinics.

TRANSPORT/TRAVEL

  • Ferry services got back into full swing today, sailing to all Greek island and mainland ports as part of the fourth phase of the government’s plan to gradually bring the country out of the nationwide lockdown. The reopening of ferry services to all passengers came after the government lifted a ban on sailings to and from Crete last week.
  • Ferries will operate at a 50% capacity, which becomes 55% in larger ships with cabins, while strict health safety protocols are in place for the protection of all passengers, including taking the body temperature prior to boarding and filling out of a special questionnaire by all passengers traveling for longer than 30 minutes. Boarding will not be allowed to anyone who either displays Covid-19 symptoms or has been in contact with someone infected in the last 14 days – both as per the questionnaire. A 1.5 meters distance must also be observed by all passengers in all areas and at any time.
  • The lifting of the ban, however, does not include ferries sailing between Greece and Italy, which are expected to resume on June 1 if coronavirus infections and deaths in Italy continue to drop over the coming days.

TOURISM

  • A bill aimed at promoting specialized forms of tourism in Greece, including diving, was voted through Parliament late on Friday.
  • Diving is now allowed across Greece, with no depth limits, with some exceptions including areas where the armed forces conduct exercises.
  • Divers will henceforth be able to visit underwater archaeological sites without the requirement that they be accompanied by archaeologist divers, as long as they are escorted by members of certified dive clubs.
  • Access will also be permitted to shipwrecks more than 50 years old, which had been forbidden to date, as long as divers are accompanied by certified dive club members.

HEALTH

  • Concerns are growing about the potential for high transmission of the new coronavirus within large enclosed communities after health authorities recorded 18 new Covid-19 infections in a Roma settlement in Nea Smyrni, Larissa, central Greece, which was locked down last month.
  • Scores of camp residents have been tested by health officials who will now trace the contacts of the new cases, including a 46-year-old man who is in the intensive care unit of Larissa General Hospital and a 21-year-old pregnant woman. The 18 cases at the Roma camp are among the 21 new Covid-19 infections announced by authorities on Friday.
  • Another new case is a resident of a hotel hosting migrants in Kranidi, in the Peloponnese, which was also locked down last month after 150 people there tested positive for Covid-19. Amid concerns about a possible outbreak in overcrowded migrant reception centers on the Aegean islands, authorities extended restrictions on movement in those camps until June 7.

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