Disneyland shuts gates for fourth time in history amid coronavirus fears

Disneyland and Disney California Adventure has closed its gates for the fourth time in history amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The west-coast parks, which opened in 1955, had previously only shut for the assassination of President John Kennedy, the 1994 Northridge earthquake and the 9/11 attacks. They will now be shut from the morning of March 14, a spokesperson said.

They said: ‘While there have been no reported cases of COVID-19 at Disneyland Resort, after carefully reviewing the guidelines of the Governor of California’s executive order and in the best interest of our guests and employees, we are proceeding with the closure of Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure, beginning the morning of March 14 through the end of the month.’

The Hotels of Disneyland Resort will remain open until March 16, to give guests the ability to make necessary travel arrangements, while Downtown Disney will also remain open.

In a statement, Disney said that they would be continuing to pay cast members during the parks’ closure.

The company added: ‘Disneyland Resort will work with guests who wish to change or cancel their visits, and will provide refunds to those who have hotel bookings during this closure period.’

Disney’s decision to close the parks comes after California Governor called for gatherings of under 250 people to be cancelled across the state. The order has led to other events such as Coachella and South by Southwest to also be postponed.

Officials have also been encouraging citizens to practice ‘social distancing’ by leaving six feet between them and other people.

US President Donald Trump announced early this morning that there would be a travel ban against 26 coronavirus countries, not including the UK.

European Council president Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reacted angrily to news, which they were not consulted on.

In a joint statement, they said: ‘The European Union disapproves of the fact that the US decision to impose a travel ban was taken unilaterally and without consultation.The coronavirus is a global crisis, not limited to any continent and it requires co-operation rather than unilateral action.’

More than 4,600 people have died from Covid-19 around the world, while 126,000 have been infected, the World Health Organisation reports.

Of those, around 68,000 victims are believed to have recovered.

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