Peru opens airports after lifting local travel ban

Peru restarted its air, land and river transport within its borders on Wednesday after keeping it in a standstill for four months to curb infections by the new coronavirus.Long lines at Jorge Chávez airport in Lima, the country's main airport, were crowded with users wearing masks and face shields, but there was little sign of social distancing.Passenger processing was slow, causing some passengers to jump over barricades to arrive on time for the first flight of the morning headed to Iquitos, the largest Peruvian city in the Amazon.

There were 20 flights scheduled for Wednesday from this major airport, a figure considerably lower than the more than 100 daily flights before the start of the pandemic.In the capital's bus terminals, passengers arrived for afternoon departures.Amazonian river transport also resumed operations.

The government ordered the reopening of transportation in 18 of 25 regions of the country.Seven regions remain in quarantine as the increase in infections continues to rise.As of Tuesday evening, Peru registered 12,229 deaths and more than 333,000 infected with the new coronavirus, the second-largest virus spread in Latin America after Brazil.

(Image Credit: AP)