Paris' Louvre closes for staff meeting on coronavirus
Visitors locked out on Sunday as museum staff refused to work over coronavirus concerns
PARIS: Art lovers were left locked out of the Louvre in Paris on Sunday morning as the staff of world’s most-visited museum refused to work due to coronavirus concerns.
Earlier, it was reported they held a staff meeting about the coronavirus outbreak.
Long lines of disgruntled tourists snaked outside the museum, the home of Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa portrait and the Venus de Milo sculpture.
A spokeswoman said the museum in central Paris was expected to open after the meeting between management, personnel and the staff doctor. It was later announced that the museum, visited by up to 15,000 people daily, would be closed for the day.
She added museums were not covered by government orders to cancel, until further notice, all public gatherings indoors or in confined spaces with more than 5,000 people.
The government issued the orders on Saturday as it tries to contain the spread of the virus. As of Saturday evening, France had 100 confirmed cases of the disease.
As a result of the ban, the annual Paris farm show closed a day early on Saturday. A half marathon with more than 40,000 runners expected on Sunday in the French capital was called off.