‘We just don’t know what’s going to happen’
By Mary Dennehy
DESERTED streets, quiet classrooms and empty shop shelves is what faced Joseph O’Flaherty this week, as the Italian town he’s lived in since 2008 shut down.
Originally from Tallaght, Joseph lives with his wife and five-year-old son in the provincial town of Mantova, which lies in the south east corner of the Italian region of Lombardy.
The fair ground is currently closed
A number of villages across the Lombardy region are currently in lockdown, in an attempt to curb the spread of coronavirus.
At the time of The Echo going to print on Wednesday, an outbreak of the virus in Northern Italy had resulted in 11 deaths and more than 320 confirmed cases.
Speaking with The Echo from his apartment on Tuesday afternoon, Joseph said that while the 50,000 people living in Mantova are not yet restricted to their homes, daily life is not as they know it.
“I’m a teacher in a school for adults and my school is completely closed”, Joseph said.
“My son’s school is closed for at least a week, possibly two.
“Cinemas, [swimming] pools, theatres are all closed.
“They’ve closed all the public places…and bars are closed from 6pm to 6am [daily].
“People can get a coffee during the day but they don’t want people gathering in large numbers in the evening.
A notice saying that the cinema is closed
“They’ve prohibited large gatherings.
“There’s a fair ground, a seasonal event, that’s closed since Sunday.
“Some supermarkets are open but they’re selling out of food… people are buying up items like pasta, water and flour.
“Pharmacies have signs up saying ‘no masks, no disinfectant’.
“It’s all pretty weird.”
According to Joseph, his local supermarket is only letting 25 people in at a time, and mass is being streamed online.
A former student of Old Bawn Community School, Joseph explained that the town of Mantova is a two-hour trip away from Milan by train, with public transport links curtailed.
When speaking with The Echo, Joseph said that he was looking out of his apartment window on what should be a busy, bustling main street.
However, the street was abandoned, bar for the odd car.
He could also see the still carnival from his window, and striking an eerie silhouette against the skyline.
For Joseph, the surrealism of the situation is at the forefront of his mind right now, alongside what happens if they are restricted to their homes.
“I’m 44 years old and in good health so I’m not terribly worried”, Joseph said.
“However, we just don’t know what’s going to happen.
“We’re not restricted to the house yet but it’s early days for us [in Mantova], this only kicked in on Monday.
“There are a lot more restrictions [in other parts of Italy] but we can see it happening here too and that’s what we’re worried about at the moment.”
To date, there has been no confirmed cases of coronavirus COVID-19 in Ireland.
There has been 90 suspected cases, but none have tested positive for the respiratory illness.
The HSE’s National Public Health Emergency Team is monitoring the situation both globally and in Europe, where there has been confirmed cases in countries including France, Austria and Spain.
For detailed information and the latest advice on coronavirus visit the HSE’s website.
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