Published 15:07 IST, March 17th 2020
Netherlands: People line up to buy weed after Dutch govt announces lockdown
People in the Netherlands were seen lining up in front of coffee shops to buy weed before the nation goes into lockdown until April 6 amid coronavirus outbreak.
While the world is busy hoarding up essentials like toilet paper, rice including other things in the wake of deadly coronavirus outbreak, people in the Netherlands were seen lining up in front of coffee shops to buy weed. Before the nation goes into lockdown until April 6, images surfaced on various social media platforms which showed people waiting in huge queues waiting to buy weed that could last for an entire month. From calling it the “bizarre highest priority” to “insane choices” people made fun of Netherlanders for worrying about the drugs most among other things.
As of March 17, Netherlands has recorded over 1,400 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with at least 24 deaths as the government announced nationwide precautionary measures on March 15. Not only will the schools and daycare centres in the Netherlands be shut till April 6, but also cafes, restaurants, cannabis cafes, and sports clubs.
Air France-KLM to be grounded
Along with the closing of public spaces, the Netherlands’ government has announced that Airline Air France-KLM will ground virtually its entire fleet for at least the next 60 days and the passenger numbers are expected to plunge by up to 90 per cent. In a bid to keep the airline company afloat, the authorities have said that it will do “all it can”. Moreover, the budget airline Easyjet which reportedly has a major hub at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport is also halting flights. According to reports, the Amsterdam stock exchange opened down 5.5 per cent on March 16 and has continued to fall in early trading, reportedly dipping below 400 points. Moreover, the AEX blue-chip index has also lost 20 per cent of its value in a week.
Updated 15:07 IST, March 17th 2020