Dutch flock to the shops before expected Christmas lockdown

The Dutch hit the shops on Saturday as they prepared for a Christmas lockdown that is expected to close all but essential stores from Sunday, as the health minister said authorities were "extremely worried" about the omicron variant of COVID-19.

>>Reuters
Published : 18 Dec 2021, 01:25 PM
Updated : 18 Dec 2021, 04:53 PM

The main shopping street in Leiden, 20 kilometres from the capital The Hague, was thronged with people looking for last-minute gifts. Some stores, selling toys or luxury skin care and cosmetics, had queues outside.

"It's normally busy before Christmas but this much busier than usual," cosmetics shop manager Ali Windster told Reuters.

Municipal authorities in the port city of Rotterdam urged shoppers via Twitter to stay at home because the city centre was "too busy".

The government is meeting on Saturday with its health experts, who have recommended the closure of all non-essential shops, schools, bars, restaurants and other public venues.

"We are extremely worried," about the possible spread of the omicron variant, Health Minister Hugo de Jonge told journalists earlier on Saturday.

Stocking up on cosmetics in Windster's Leiden shop was Carla Nekeman, who said she was preparing for a strict new lockdown.

General view of the canals at the Prinsengracht in Amsterdam, Netherlands March 10, 2021. Picture taken March 10, 2021. REUTERS

"I am getting a lot of the stuff I need that I can't get in the supermarket," Nekeman said. "I'll have to stand in line everywhere."

Health ministry spokesperson Axel Dees told Reuters there would be a government press conference to announce new measures at 7 p.m. (1800 GMT). He did not comment on the types of measures that would be announced.

Broadcasters NOS and RTL reported that the lockdown, which will also see hairdressers and gyms close their doors, would start early on Sunday morning and run until Jan. 14.

It would come after the government on Tuesday extended the 5 p.m. to 5 a.m. closure of bars, restaurants and most stores, introduced in late November, until Jan. 14.

Prime Minister Mark Rutte said then that omicron could be the dominant coronavirus variant in the Netherlands by January.

On Saturday the National Institute for Public Health (RIVM) reported a total of over 2.9 million COVID-19 cases since the start of the pandemic with 20,420 reported deaths. On Saturday the institute reported 14,616 new infections in 24 hours.

The feared new wave of omicron infections would further burden the country's strained healthcare system, which is already postponing most routine care and cancelling all but urgent operations in order to cope with COVID-19 patients. (Reporting by Stephanie van den Berg Editing by Mark Potter and Catherine Evans)