Accustomed to isolation, Patagonians still fear impact of coronavirus
ARGENTINA | TODAY 09:42
Residents in the region, which is heavily dependent on tourism and oil, fear the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
ASTRID PERKINS WALKS HER DOG AT THE YARD OF HER HOME IN BAHIA BUSTAMANTE, IN THE PROVINCE OF CHUBUT. | PHOTOS: ANGELES SORIANO/AFP
Those who have lived in isolation for years in Patagonian localities do not fear solitude – but they are afraid of the coronavirus pandemic devastating a local economy dependent on tourism and oil.
Near the Andes they have suffered major blizzards which have left them without power and incommunicado for months, while on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean they have been hit by merciless rains blocking all access routes.
Those in Patagonia are accustomed to isolation and having only one hospital for miles around, but they are suffering the ravages of the pandemic in a region of Argentina which, according to the analysts, will be badly hit due its dependence on tourism and oil, two of the sectors most affected by the Covid-19 crisis.
Bahía Bustamante, in the oil province of Chubut, is on the northern shore of the gulf of San Jorge on the Atlantic Ocean. It is a zone rich in biodiversity with an intensely blue sea and white sandy beaches with large rock formations.
More:
https://www.batimes.com.ar/news/argentina/accustomed-to-isolation-patagonians-still-fear-impact-of-coronavirus.phtml
