Havana, September 1 (RHC)-- As of this Tuesday, Havana is applying a series of measures to reinforce the confrontation of COVID-19. The capital continues to be the epicenter of the epidemic in Cuba. Of the 558 active cases in the country, 380 are from the city.

On Monday, the president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, called on the city's municipal and provincial authorities to rigorously apply the restrictions.

He warned that the main problem is many asymptomatic people who, not being detected, infect the population. He added that to address the problem, there has to be joint participation of the community and authorities.

"These measures, just because they were declared, are not going to be fulfilled by themselves. There has to be an active involvement by the government with the citizens and participation of the population, most of whom support these measures so that it starts to give us an actual impact."

Diaz Canel said that the expected result would be the decrease of new cases, a greater number of discharges, the reduction of admissions, and the recovery of patients in serious and critical condition.

The restrictions being applied as of Tuesday include an overnight curfew, a ban on travel from the Cuban capital to other provinces, and more significant limits on vehicles' circulation. After an assessment of the epidemiological situation, authorities will decide if these measures stay for 15 days or are enforced beyond that time.