Glenn Wickman
JUST like the village of Asterix and Obelix, surrounded on all sides by the Romans, 10 towns in Castellon Province have managed to completely ward off COVID.
These are Arañuel, Castell de Cabres, Fuente la Reina, Fuentes de Ayodar, Herbes, Ludiente, Palanques, Sacañet, Torralba de Pinar and Zorita del Mestrazgo.
On a regional scale, 21 out of the 542 municipalities throughout the Valencian Community – less than 4% – are currently free from the virus, with another six in Alicante Province and five in Valencia.
Benifato, Benillup, Bolulla, Confrides, Castell de Guadalest and Famorca are resisting the virus in Alicante, while the Valencian towns to register zero infections are Aielo de Rugat, Castellfabib, Pobla de San Miguel, Sempere and Valles.
The situation has improved greatly over the last two months, with the number of coronavirus-free towns and villages remaining stable.
However, before that, the percentage of ‘clean’ municipalities had dwindled from 21% to 3.8% between October and February.
This drastic improvement further confirms that the restrictions and extra care taken by residents in March and April have paid off – and continue to do so.
The vast majority of these COVID-free towns are located inland and have very low population figures of around 100 inhabitants or less.
As most residents are above a certain age, they have already received both doses of the vaccine, meaning that the 70% benchmark for herd immunity was easily reached some time ago.
It also helps that, in most cases, these towns and villages have hardly any bars, restaurants or shops, meaning social interaction is low.
In addition, the advanced age of most residents has prompted them to be extra cautious to prevent infection, using masks at all times and abiding strictly by the official health regulations.
READ MORE:
- Official COVID-19 figures for Spain’s Costa Blanca put it into the coronavirus ‘low risk’ category
- COVID-19 case numbers in Costa Blanca and Valencia regions of Spain remain solidly constant
