Coronavirus infection rates drop, restrictions eased on the island of Poros

Greek Government Spokesman Stelios Petsas on Monday announced that Health Ministry spokesperson and infectious diseases expert Professor Sotiris Tsiodras together with Deputy Crisis Control Minister Nikos Hardalias and Deputy Health Minister Vassilis Kontozamanis will hold televised bi-weekly coronavirus briefings every Tuesday and Friday at 6pm.

The decision was made after the weekly Covid-19 meeting chaired by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

The televised bi-weekly coronavirus briefings will inform citizens and visitors of the new measures and inform them of the latest developments.

Meanwhile, Hardalias announced that some of the strict measures imposed on Poros to limit the spread of coronavirus cases have been lifted, but the island will remain under close observation by authorities.

Restrictions that still apply until 6am Tuesday September 1 include:

• A ban on the operation of restaurants, nightclubs and entertainment from midnight until 7 the next morning
• A maximum of 50 people for all public and social events and gatherings, (except for venues such as restaurants, theatres and cinemas, with particular rules)

Hardalias said he "thanks particularly the residents of Poros for their collaboration, patience and persistence in keeping the emergency measures imposed on the island," an attitude which brought results and returned the island to normalcy.

Areas in Greece still under restrictive measures related to the pandemic include the following: All of Crete, Eastern Macedonia & Thrace, Attica, the greater metropolitan areas of Thessaloniki, Larissa, Corfu, Karditsa, Pella, Pieria and Lesvos, and the municipalities of Santorini, Volos, Katerini, Rhodes, Zakynthos and Kos.

Greece recorded 170 new cases of COVID-19 in the latest 24-hour reporting period.

This raises the total number of cases to 8,819.

1,886 are considered to be related to travel from abroad and 4,009 are related to an already known case.

Thirty-one individuals are in the ICU, and their median age is 66 years. 38.7% have an underlying condition or are aged 70 and above.

Another 143 have been discharged from ICUs since the start of the pandemic in Greece.

The country’s pandemic death toll stands at 242. The median age of all was 77 years and 94.6% of the deceased had an underlying condition.

Greek Education Minister Niki Kerameos also announced on Monday that the return to schools next month would be taken step by step.

Teachers will return to schools on September 1, while classes are so far scheduled to begin on September 7, she said.

"The goal is to limit travel significantly at least a week before schools begin in order to restrict any possible spread of infections by those who don't have symptoms," Kerameos added.

All students and educational staff will be required to wear masks at all times and additional cleaning staff will be hired to meet the increased sanitation needs.