Greece Announces 151 New Coronavirus Cases; Cancellation of All August 15 Services

On Friday, the Greek National Health Organization, EODY, announced a total of 151 coronavirus infections in Greece, with the vast majority of them — 144– being of domestic origin. Only seven of the cases detected since Thursday were detected at the country’s entrance points.
Yesterday, there were 153 cases, a new high since Greece opened its borders to foreign travel on July 1. No new deaths were reported since yesterday, so the number of fatalities of those who died with Covid remains at 210.
There have been 5,270 people diagnosed with carrying the coronavirus in Greece since the beginning of the pandemic, including all those who have recovered. The average age of all those who succumbed to the disease is 76 years.
Fourteen patients across Greece remain intubated in ICU’s; a total of 129 individuals have been successfully discharged from ICUs since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.
Greek national health authorities have conducted a total of 630,983 coronavirus tests up to this point.

In other coronavirus-related developments on Friday, Nikos Hardalias, the Deputy Minister for Civil Protection and Crisis Management, announced that all activities, including religious services, for the August 15 Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a major festival time in Greece, will be cancelled this year out of an abundance of caution.
This emergency measure, he said, was necessary due to the enormous numbers of people who celebrate this major feast day and who attend the many festivals associated with the Feast. This ban also extends to fairs and nighttime entertainment, and all the usual processions of August 15.
The Deputy Minister said that this difficult decision was made following a recommendation from Greece’s Committee of Infectious Diseases as well as the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece, regarding the banning of the religious events and festivals.
Hardalias also noted that citizens of the island nation of Malta will be banned from entering the country from this point on unless they can prove a negative virus result (PCR) in a test which must have been taken up to 72 hours before their arrival in Greece.
The Deputy Minister also noted that the ban on standing in bars, nightclubs, music venues and the like will be extended until August 31. He also stated that from this point onward, all the summer bazaars in the country will be banned until further notice.