After two months of alert, the Government declared the situation of calamity as of December 1st.

The resolution of the Council of Ministers declaring the situation of calamity in the scope of the covid-19 pandemic, published this Sunday in the Republic Gazette, clarifies that the entire continental territory will remain at this level of intervention for four months, until 23:50 hours on March 20, 2022.

The calamity situation, above the contingency and alert situation, had already been decreed three times throughout the continental territory since the beginning of the pandemic, this being the fourth.

It provides for “maintaining the state of readiness of communications and public security services, emergency medical services and all civil protection agents, with reinforcement of resources for support operations in the health area”, as well as the “maintenance of the functioning of the Covid-19 subcommittee, within the scope of the National Civil Protection Commission, on a permanent basis, as a structure responsible for requesting and processing information relating to the ongoing epidemic, ensuring permanent monitoring of the situation.” And also “the use, when necessary, of the system of warnings to the population by the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority”.

The document also reads that the Council of Ministers decides to determine “the activation of territorially competent political coordination structures”, which will be the five regional coordinators in the fight against the pandemic (corresponding to the North, Centre, Lisbon and Vale do Tejo regions, Alentejo and Algarve).

Temperature measurements and certificate at events

It is again foreseen that “they can be covered with body temperature by non-invasive means, without control of access to the workplace, public services or institutions, educational, teaching and professional training, commercial, cultural or sporting spaces, to means of transport, the obligation of health, the obligatorily to prisons or educational centers, as well as in residential structures”.

According to the decree, the General Directorate of Health is responsible for defining the number of participants up to which is considered “large events”, as well as the number of participants up to which the presentation of a digital certificate and negative test (or proof) is waived ).

Recommended telework and aggravated fines

During the duration of the calamity situation, it is “recommended, throughout the same territory, the adoption of the telework regime whenever the functions in question the event”, as had already been announced by the prime minister last week. This model will be mandatory between 2 and 9 January, during which time “bars, other non-spectacled beverage accessories and devices with a dance space” will be closed.

The resolution recalls that “disobedience and resistance to the legitimate orders of the competent authorities, when practiced during the duration of the calamity situation”, regardless of crime and are sanctioned, “being as respective penalties aggravated by a third, their minimum and maximum limits”.