Ryanair and Aer Lingus monitor impact of coronavirus on travel to Italy

Italy temporarily banned public events in Lombardy and Veneto following a spike in the number of confirmed virus cases to 130 over the weekend

Irish airlines were keeping a watching brief on Sunday after Italian authorities announced closures in the north of the country following a surge in the number of coronavirus cases.

Italy temporarily banned public events in the northern regions of Lombardy and Veneto following a spike in the number of confirmed virus cases to 130 from three over the weekend.

Ryanair and Aer Lingus both fly to Milan in Lombardy. Ryanair said that flights to and from Milan were continuing as normal.

Aer Lingus said that it was “monitoring the situation and following all guidelines from the relevant authorities in relation to this issue”.

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The three airports that serve Milan continued their services as normal. Two of them, Linate and Malpensa, told passengers that regular activity continued.

The third, Bergamo, where Ryanair has a base, maintained operations as normal.

A notice on its website referred those returning from affected countries to Italian health authorities for advice.

Lombardy and Veneto said they would close schools for a week beginning on Monday while the affected regions postponed carnivals, football matches and fashion shows.

Fashion houses Giorgio Armani and Laura Biagiotte held shows with no spectators on Sunday. The events were scheduled as part of Milan's Fashion Week.

Italy's top football competition, Serie A, postponed three fixtures, Atalanta versus Sassuolo, Hellas Verona versus Cagliari, and Inter Milan versus Sampdoria. Milan's famous La Scala opera house was forced to cancel performances.

Venice Carnival, held to mark the beginning of Lent this week, has also been suspended.

Barry O'Halloran

Barry O'Halloran

Barry O’Halloran covers energy, construction, insolvency, and gaming and betting, among other areas