Joshua Parfitt
AN estimated 8,000 lives have been saved in the Comunitat Valenciana thanks to up to 96% of residents staying at home, according to a new study of phone data.
Telecommunications information obtained from Spain’s National Institute of Statistics (INE) showed that residents in the municipalities of Denia and Benicarlo were the most disciplined, with 96% people not leaving their residential areas.
Across the entire Comunitat, an estimated 89% of people either stayed at home or only ventured out to for basic necessities, geo-positioning information revealed.
The collaboration between the INE, Spain’s leading computer scientist, Nuria Oliver, and six Valencian region universities, found that an estimated 8,500 would have died in the Comunitat from infection by COVID-19 if no measures were imposed.
Figures as of yesterday show mortalities at 724 – meaning just under 8,000 lives have been saved thanks to the coronavirus lockdown.
The study found that, if only social distancing measures were advised, 4,500 people would have died.
If social distancing was advised alongside the closure of schools and events, 3,300 would have died.
The death toll was also estimated at 1,500 had non-essential businesses remained open.
The telecommunications data also showed that daily distances travelled dropped 59% in Castellon, 58% in Alicante and 52% in Valencia.
The average across Spain was recorded as a 51% drop.
