NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – From Disneyland to the U.S. Supreme Court, from Wall Street to Dodgers Stadium, nearly every facet of American life fell under turmoil on Thursday as the coronavirus outbreak triggered sweeping closures and economic interruption.
As concern grew over a quick spread of the sometimes-fatal COVID-19 respiratory health problem caused by the virus, the U.S. stock exchange cratered anew, professional and college sports leagues suspended play, Broadway theaters went dark and numerous schools from Ohio to Texas shuttered.
The unprecedented cascade of shutdowns showed growing worries that the break out of the highly contagious pathogen, which has currently eliminated at least 40 individuals in the United States, could race out of control unless authorities squelch large public gatherings.
As business locked their workplaces and dispatched workers to work from home, worries of a recession rose in step with the variety of U.S. infections, which jumped to more than 1,300 on Thursday. The concerns were shown in U.S. stock markets, with major indexes now in bear-market area – down at least 20%from their recent high.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio stated a state of emergency situation, granting him new powers as the variety of confirmed cases rose to 95 cases in the country’s most populated city.
” We are entering into a circumstance where the only example is war and a wartime dynamic,” de Blasio said, referring to an expected surge in need for hospital beds.
From California to New York, officials banned large events and closed museums and other institutions without stating the length of time the instructions would stay in place, compounding the unpredictability.
After the Trump administration imposed sweeping restrictions on flight in between the United States and Europe, Gabriella Ribeiro, a Wayne, New Jersey-based travel expert, stated she was fielding a flood of worried calls from consumers.
” We call it the ‘C’ word,” Ribeiro stated of coronavirus. “We’ve been through Ebola and SARS, but I haven’t seen this level of panic a