• CURFEW: The northern Mexican state of Nuevo León (pop. 5.1 million) will start a statewide curfew on Friday along with hard lockdown measures over the weekend to fight the rapid spread in coronavirus cases that threatens to overwhelm hospital bed capacity.
• OCCUPANCY: One the country’s manufacturing powerhouses, Nuevo León has seen a sudden spike in daily coronavirus deaths with state authorities reporting 22 fatalities on Thursday. Residents are to stay home from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m except for those working in essential activities.
• COLLAPSE: “If the virus continues growing like this, the health system will completely collapse and we would have to shut down all economic activity”, said Governor Jaime Rodríguez. Mexican federal authorities have officially reported 6,656 coronavirus cases in Nuevo León along with 363 deaths.
• LOCKDOWN: While certain non-essential businesses like malls and restaurants are able to operate at a restricted capacity during weekdays, authorities have mandated a weekend lockdown of non-essential activities. Authorities said also they will oversee the proper use of face masks in public.
