Following yesterday's declaration of a health emergency in Mexico due to the coronavirus epidemic, regional authorities immediately began to strengthen measures to protect the population from infection. From April 1, many Mexican states will close all retail establishments and companies not related to the provision of essential services to the population, as well as department stores, entertainment venues and recreational facilities, and strengthen control over compliance with the quarantine regime and public safety. At the same time, all mass events in which more than 50 people are expected to participate are prohibited. Commercial enterprises are recommended to transfer employees to remote work or temporarily stop operations.
The governors of several states and the Federal District of Mexico announced the suspension of all commercial activities not related to the production and sale of food, the sale of medicines, the provision of medical, transport, banking and insurance services, and the sale of fuel. Major department stores such as Liverpool, Sears, Sunborn and others have announced the temporary closure of their stores across the country. Most government service offices, registry offices, traffic police departments and offices of other municipal services are not working. You should close bars, discos and restaurants. Classes in all educational institutions have been suspended since March 20.
Mexico's National Council of Commerce, Services and Tourism (Concanaco) reports that 65% of shops and 80% of hotels in the country are now closed. In addition, almost all hotels and tourism businesses may be closed by next week.
Mexico is experiencing the deepest tourism crisis in its history. Next week — Easter, when traditionally the occupancy rate of hotels in the state's resorts reached 95%. Now it does not exceed 12%, and is expected to fall even more. Last year, 2.7 million foreign visitors visited Mexico during Easter week, bringing the country more than MXN 7.3 billion ($306 million) in hotel and rental accommodations alone. Today, a wave of cancellations hit all hotels in Mexico. In Acapulco and Puebla, cancellation rates reach 100%; in Cancun and Pacific resorts — up to 90%. Such cancellations did not occur during Hurricane Wilma in 2005 or during the swine flu epidemic in 2009.
153 large chain hotels have closed completely, 85 are planning to do so in the near future. It's also bad that many hotel companies are reconsidering their investment plans for this year. City Express and Grupo Posadas have already announced the suspension of the construction of new hotels; the latter is considered one of the largest hotel chains in Mexico.
The Ministry of Tourism also reports a sharp decline in the number of foreign flights. In just the last 2 weeks of March, the number of flights to Mexico from North America fell by 21%, from South America — 75%, from Europe — by 45%. Mexico did not close its borders, however, many other countries introduced restrictions on international flights. In most cases, this means that leaving Mexico is extremely difficult, and getting to Mexico from Ukraine or Russia or in the opposite direction is practically impossible. Although Mexico does not subject arriving guests to mandatory quarantine, health checks of passengers have been stepped up at the country's airports.
From April 1, quarantine measures among the population will be strengthened throughout the country. Although there is no talk of imposing a curfew at the national level, some municipal leaders have announced that people must stay home after 10 p.m. The National Guard and local police are monitoring the quarantine. Through loudspeakers, they strongly recommend not to leave your home and only go out if absolutely necessary. On March 30, 51 people were detained on the Caribbean island of Cozumel for violating the quarantine regime. In Puebla and Merida, fines reaching several thousand dollars or imprisonment are provided for violating the quarantine regime by coronavirus patients.
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— Noticaribe (@Noticaribe)April 1, 2020
In the normal absence of travelers and the imposed quarantine, the beaches of the Caribbean coast of Mexico are almost empty. In the resort town of Playa del Carmen, a ban on visiting the beaches has been introduced, and the police are politely asking vacationers to go home. In Cancun, the beaches remain open, but red flags are posted everywhere indicating that swimming is prohibited.
In general, the situation in Mexico is quite calm, there is no panic among the population or empty shelves in stores. A number of regions have introduced restrictions on the sale of alcohol. There was no increase in prices for basic products and goods. Although there are isolated reports of supermarket robberies, this is not a widespread phenomenon. Almost all governors reported increased measures to protect public safety and patrol residential areas. Mexico State Governor Alfredo del Mazo has promised up to 7 years in prison for those who rob stores or riot under normal emergency conditions.
As of March 31, the number of patients with coronavirus in Mexico reached 1,215 people, 29 people died. In the state of Quintana Roo on the Caribbean coast of Mexico, the virus was detected in 46 people, the largest number in Cancun (32); one person died.