Hormozgan Reinstates Lockdown as New Virus Cases Exceed 230,000

Iran brought back Covid-19 restrictions in the southern province of Hormozgan, as the number of confirmed cases nationwide reached 230,211, officials announced on Wednesday.
Following weeks of rising infections, Iran’s coronavirus taskforce gave the greenlight to the virus-hit region to reimpose quarantine measures in a select number of cities, ISNA reported.
Hormozgan Governor General Fereydoun Hemmati said starting Friday, seven “red” cities will be put under lockdown for a week to overcome the outbreak.
The southern tourist hotspot is the first province in Iran to exercise authority over anti-contagion policies. As of Saturday, all “red” provinces, or areas with high coronavirus transmission rates, will get the same mandate.
At least seven others out of Iran’s 31 provinces are in a state of emergency and six have reported an alarming number of infections and deaths. 
Health Ministry Spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari said there is a “significant rise” in cases and hospitalizations in Tehran, but did not include the key province in her count of high-risk areas.
Hormozgan’s governor general noted that the region was in a relatively good condition until late May, adding that since then, they “witnessed an uptrend in infections and fatalities”.
According to Hemmati, tracking down patients’ whereabouts pointed authorities to overcrowded places such as covered bazaars as the main source of virus transmission.
One hospital administrator in Hormozgan told ISNA that only 17% of the province’s population wore facemasks in early June, but that figure has since increased to 75%.
The shutdown includes universities, schools, beauty salons, reception halls and mosques. 
Tehran’s Governor General Anoushirvan Mohseni Bandpey is among officials who has called for the return of restrictions in the capital city. 
Pointing out that over one million use Tehran’s public transport system daily, he said, “One of our suggestions is to lift the ban on personal car use in the capital’s restricted zone.”
While over 90% of passengers wear facemask, less than 30% observe social distancing, Bandpey said. 

Near 11,000 Deaths

After two weeks of three-digit rises in fatalities, over 140 daily deaths on Wednesday pushed the death toll to 10,958.
Iran recorded 2,549 fresh cases of the novel coronavirus during the past 24 hours, 63% of whom were hospitalized. The new cases took the national total to 230,211. 
President Hassan Rouhani in Wednesday’s weekly Cabinet meeting urged the public for a change in lifestyle to slow the pandemic. 
On what his administration is doing to curb the spread of the virus, Rouhani said, “We are delegating authority to provinces to implement restrictions at will.”
The Health Ministry’s spokeswoman said more than 191,000 have recovered from the respiratory illness across the country and nearly 3,100 are in critical condition.
Lari concluded by saying, “There is no vaccine or treatment for the disease, but keeping a distance of 1.5 meters from others, washing hands frequently and wearing facemasks can protect you from the virus by 95%.”
Iran has carried out 1.69 million diagnostic tests to identify infections.