In an unprecedented move, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced on Monday that the entire country would be placed under lockdown due to coronavirus fears.
"I am going to sign a decree that can be summarised as follows: I stay at home," Conte told the country on Monday. "The whole of Italy will become a protected zone."
The movement of Italy's 60 million-strong population will be severely limited from Tuesday. People can now travel only for emergencies or urgent health situations, both within and out of the country.
People now need get police permission to travel, which entails explaining to authorities why they need to leave.
Checkpoints on motorways, toll booths, train stations, and airports are also expected to be introduced.
Source: The Guardian
Mass gatherings and all sporting events, including the Serie A league, have been canceled.
Source: The Guardian
All museums and cultural centers have also shut. Italians have also been asked to stay at home and limit social contact as much as possible.
Source: BBC
While restaurants and bars are still running, they are only allowed to open between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m.
Source: The Guardian
Those businesses also have to guarantee that customers are at least one meter, or 3.2 feet, apart.
Source: Sky News
Giorgia, a 19-year-old from Rome, told Business Insider said Italians are sticking to this rule rigorously. This photo from her shows a line forming outside a local pharmacy, with people keeping a considerable distance between each other.
Popular public spaces have also emptied out. This picture was taken near Villa Borghese in Rome on Tuesday, which is an area usually packed with tourists.
The main train station in Reggio Emilia, northern Italy, is usually filled with people traveling to other parts of the country. But on Monday night, it was also looking deserted.
Marta, a 27-year-old from Lombardy region, told Business Insider people had been "panicking" during the early stages of the outbreak, but are now calmer since they know supermarkets will still be open and selling food.
"People were panicking at the beginning, but now that they know the supermarkets are still open and they can still get food, it's gotten a bit better," Marta, who is from Lombardy's Cremona province, told Business Insider.
"Now that we know what the situation is, we are just trying to get used to it, but it's still weird."
Lombardy is the worst-hit region in Italy and Europe.
Marta also worries about the country's "struggling" healthcare system. Her mother, a nurse at a local hospital, said there are limited beds in intensive care and that it's been difficult to balance the work between coronavirus and other patients.
Conte has also told healthcare workers to cancel their holidays so they can help fight the outbreak.
Prisons around the country have also been hit hard by the country's coronavirus measures. Inmates across several jails rioted after the country banned or limited family visits, resulting in at least six deaths.
Unrest began at jails in Modena, Pavia, Rome, and Foggia, ultimately spreading to a total of 27 prisons, Business Insider's Rhea Mahbubani reported.
At least 50 inmates eventually escaped, while others set fires and took guards hostage.
Three inmates died inside a jail in Modena, the country's north, while three others died after being transferred away from the prison, Al Jazeera reported, citing Francesco Basentini, head of Italy's prison administration.
