10 April 2020 Update From A Locked Down Ghent

459 new patients were admitted to the hospital in the last 24 hours, and 483 new people have also been discharged, bringing the total number of people in the hospital because of the coronavirus at the moment to 5,590. This is a further decrease, with 98 patients. A little bit of good news. Unfortunately, the total number of deaths in Belgium since the beginning of the pandemic is currently 2,523. The government keep stressing that If we want to enjoy the summer later, we will have to persevere now. One of Belgian’s lead virologist said yesterday that the measures currently in place to tackle the spread of the coronavirus will only be reduced slowly, and it could take a year before everything is back to normal. Anyway, we will know more next Wednesday when the National Security Council, which decided on the measures to contain the coronavirus as well as their extension until 19 April, will meet again. They will likely discuss the possible extension of the lockdown measures beyond 19 April, until 3 May, according to the Belga press agency. The measures implemented to control Covid 19 have been more or less imposed uniformly in Europe and are draconian enough that it is very likely that in Europe we will see the largest quarterly decline in economic activity since 1933. Just as important as economical figures is the value of restoring a sense of normality and well-being, with physical isolation eased. For us, it is about getting back to the lives we loved! Stay Safe, Stay Healthy – Jozeph Kluyskensstraat, Ghent, Belgium