An Irish teacher living in Italy has said the nation is “on edge” as it begins to ease Europe’s longest lockdown.
Kevin O’Brien lives in the village of Salorno just two hours from the devastated city of Bergamo which became the epicentre of the outbreak.
He has been locked down with his Italian wife and two children for more than two months as the country battled a horrific death toll from Covid-19.
They have only left home for groceries and the children have not been allowed out and about.
Now they are looking forward to seeing their Italian grandparents for the first time in weeks.
“My wife’s parents are a five-minute walk away and our children are their only grandchildren so it drives them mad that we are so close but yet so far away,” Kevin told the Irish Mirror.
“It is also my mother-in-law’s birthday tomorrow and mine on Thursday so we plan meeting early next week to celebrate, especially for the children.”
As Italy eases out of lockdown, Kevin’s family can walk beyond their previous 200 metre limit but must stay in their village.
Children must be supervised outside and groups are limited to 10 people at a time while everyone wears a mask.
“The mood is a little lighter but still on edge,” Kevin said. “The new worry is childcare. When people return to work but schools don’t open they do not know what to do about children.”
