COVID-19 pandemic in Italy

Italy was the first country in Europe to be hit by a large outbreak of COVID-19. The first confirmed cases were two Chinese tourists in Rome, and a few weeks later a cluster appeared in the town of Codogno in Lombardy, followed by outbreaks in the north of the country. Hospitals in Lombardy, especially around Bergamo, were quickly overwhelmed, and many people died. The government imposed restrictions on the worst affected towns, then extended a national lockdown, among the strictest in the world at the time, in March 2020. Restrictions were eased gradually from May. Later waves followed, and a vaccination campaign began at the end of 2020.

Open on the timeline