The European Space Agency published new images showing sharp reductions in pollution over several major cities in Europe due to the coronavirus crisis.
The data is based on observations by the Copernicus Sentinel-5P satellite, and show dramatic declines in the levels of nitrogen dioxide concentrations over Paris, Milan and Rome, compared to average concentrations a year ago.
The measurements were taken over 10 days to even out changes in the weather, which affect the concentration of nitrogen dioxide. NO2 forms when fossil fuels such as coal, oil, gas or diesel are burned.
European Space Agency
9:09 a.m. ET, March 27, 2020
Coronavirus outbreaks will be worse in Detroit, Chicago and New Orleans next week, surgeon general says
From CNN's Jacqueline Howard
Certain coronavirus "hot spots" in the United States are expected to see the pandemic hit even harder next week, US Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams said on CBS.
"We also see hot spots like Detroit, like Chicago, like New Orleans that will have a worse week next week than what they had this week," Adams said this morning.
"The virus and the local community are going to determine the timeline. It's not going to be us from Washington, DC. People need to follow their data, they need to make the right decisions based on what their data is telling them," Adams added.
He said the US has seen a significant increase in testing, which is "good news."
A coronavirus testing tent is pictured outside of Norwegian American Hospital in Chicago, on March 26. Jim Vondruska/NurPhoto/Getty Images
"We're approaching a million tests. We're trying to give people the data so that they can make informed decisions about where they are on their timeline and what they should be doing," he said.
During a White House briefing yesterday, Vice President Mike Pence said that "in partnership with commercial labs across America, this morning we received word that 552,000 tests have been performed and completed all across the United States."
Adams also said Friday that as the coronavirus pandemic continues, each region in the United States might experience differences in case numbers and deaths.
"Everyone's curve is going to be different," Adams said. "New York is going to look different than Boise, Idaho or Jackson, Mississippi, or New Orleans."
8:43 a.m. ET, March 27, 2020
101-year-old Italian coronavirus patient released from hospital
From CNN's Valentina DiDonato in Rome and Sharon Braithwaite in London
A 101-year-old man who tested positive for coronavirus has been released from hospital, Gloria Lisi, the deputy mayor of Rimini, Italy, said in a statement Thursday.
The man, referred to as "Mr. P" in the statement, was born in 1919 — in the middle of another tragic world pandemic.
“A hope for the future of all of us in the body of a person over one hundred years old, when the sad chronicles of these weeks mechanically tell us every day of a virus that is raging especially among the elderly. Mr. P. made it. The family brought him home yesterday evening. To teach us that even at 101 years the future is not written,” Lisi said.
Mr. P. was hospitalized in Rimini last week after testing positive for Covid-19.
Rimini registered 1,189 coronavirus cases as of Thursday, according to the Italian Civil Protection Department.
8:37 a.m. ET, March 27, 2020
Mayor of New York City suburb says he's "optimistic" about containment measures
From CNN's Adrienne Vogt
The mayor of New Rochelle, a city north of New York City, says while the number of coronavirus cases is still increasing, it is rising at a lower rate than it was two weeks ago.
“I would say that New Rochelle's local experience gives us some reason for cautious optimism. Because of those early restrictions, we're now seeing some indication that the rate of increase in the virus is moderating,” Mayor Noam Bramson said.
New Rochelle experienced a cluster of coronavirus cases beginning earlier this month, prompting officials to set up a “containment zone,” where schools, religious events and large gatherings were shuttered.
“Now that’s the policy that’s been adopted statewide and across multiple states all across America. New Rochelle was different only because it became a little bit earlier, and so our experience here can be something of a leading indicator for how things might go elsewhere,” he added.
Watch more:
9:08 a.m. ET, March 27, 2020
Will Boris Johnson continue to run the UK?
Britain's Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab leaves 10 Downing Street after a Cabinet meeting on March 17. Will Oliver/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab would stand in if UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson was too unwell to govern the country.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will isolate for seven days after testing positive for the coronavirus, but 10 Downing Street has given no indication that he plans to hand control to Raab in light of his diagnosis.
Downing Street has previously confirmed that Raab would stand in if Johnson was too unwell to continue, PA Media reports.
If Raab also became ill, the Prime Minister has the power to delegate responsibility to any of his ministers, PA reported.
Who is Raab? Raab was appointed Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and First Secretary in July 2019. He has also served as Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, and Minister of State for Housing.
8:45 a.m. ET, March 27, 2020
Boris Johnson will isolate for 7 days following coronavirus diagnosis
From CNN's Luke McGee in London
Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaks to Queen Elizabeth II on the phone during their Weekly Audience on March 25. Andrew Parsons-WPA Pool/Getty Images.
Staff at 10 Downing Street will observe Public Health England guidelines on contact with the Prime Minister, and will remain 2 meters apart from him at all times in the event they have any contact with him, a spokesperson for the PM said.
The spokesperson said Johnson noticed he had mild symptoms on Thursday afternoon and was tested in 10 Downing Street on the advice of the government's Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty. Johnson got the results of the test at midnight last night.
The 55-year-old Prime Minister has been in self-isolation in his 11 Downing Street apartment, where he will remain, the spokesperson added.
The spokesperson declined to comment on the health of Johnson’s fiancee, Carrie Symonds, who is pregnant.
The official said other people in Number 10 have self-isolated as a result of having symptoms.
Coronavirus in Westminster: The confirmation comes just over a week after a top government adviser on the virus, Neil Ferguson, said he believed he had been infected and warned: "There is a lot of Covid-19 in Westminster."
Ferguson had met the Prime Minister, as well as Whitty, and Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Vallance. It was unclear, however, where Johnson may have contracted the virus.
8:29 a.m. ET, March 27, 2020
There will be 2% loss in annual GDP growth in major economies for each month of containment
From CNN's Chris Liakos
There will be a loss of 2% in annual GDP growth in major economies for each month of containment, The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has estimated.
OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría unveiled the latest estimates in preparation to the G20 virtual summit yesterday, showing that the lockdown will directly affect sectors amounting to up to one third of GDP in the major economies.
“For each month of containment, there will be a loss of 2 percentage points in annual GDP growth. The tourism sector alone faces an output decrease as high as 70%." OECD said in a press release Friday.
OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría speaks in Davos, Switzerland, in January. Jason Alden/Bloomberg/Getty Images
The group said "many economies will fall into recession."
"This is unavoidable, as we need to continue fighting the pandemic, while at the same time putting all the efforts to be able to restore economic normality as fast as possible,” the statement said.
“Our analysis further underpins the need for sharper action to absorb the shock, and a more coordinated response by governments to maintain a lifeline to people and a private sector that will emerge in a very fragile state when the health crisis is past,” Gurria said.
8:15 a.m. ET, March 27, 2020
Queen remains in good health, the Palace says
Britain's Queen Elizabeth II speaks to Prime Minister Boris Johnson from Windsor Castle on March 25. Buckingham Palace via AP
“The Queen last saw the PM on the 11th March and is following all the appropriate advice with regards to her welfare,” the Palace said in a statement.
Charles tested positive earlier this week: Prince Charles, Queen Elizabeth II's son and the heir to the British throne, is now self-isolating in Scotland, his office announced Wednesday.
8:04 a.m. ET, March 27, 2020
Criminals are taking advantage of the coronavirus crisis, EU warns
From CNN's Radina Gigova
Criminals are taking advantage of the global coronavirus crisis and their activity is expected to rise as the pandemic drags on, Europol, the EU's law enforcement agency, said in a new report Friday.
"Criminals have been quick to seize opportunities to exploit the crisis by adapting their modi operandi or engaging in new criminal activities," Europol said.
The number of cyberattacks against organizations and individuals is "significant and is expected to increase," Europol said. A cyberattack on Brno University Hospital in the Czech Republic forced the hospital to shut down its entire IT network, postpone urgent surgical interventions and re-route new acute patients to a nearby hospital.
A large number of new or adapted fraud schemes, such as telephone schemes, supply scams and decontamination scams, can also be expected to emerge over the coming weeks as "fraudsters will attempt to capitalize further on the anxieties of people across Europe," the agency said.
The sale of counterfeit healthcare and sanitary products, as well as personal protective equipment and counterfeit pharmaceutical products, has also increased "manifold" since the start of the outbreak. Between March 3 and 10 alone, authorities have seized over 34,000 counterfeit surgical masks.
Europol said organized property theft is also on the rise. Multiple EU member states have reported cases where perpetrators gain access to private homes by impersonating medical staff providing informational material or hygiene products, or conducting a "corona test."
