There have been no new reports of Covid-19 diagnoses in the Algarve following the first two, a mother and daughter from Portimao, at the weekend. There are however a small number of "suspected cases" of people who have been admitted to Faro Hospital after showing some symptoms. These individuals are awaiting their test results from the Regional Public Health Laboratory. Moreover, the designated hospital unit in the Algarve’s capital has been functioning smoothly as they play their part in the Covid-19 response network.

The Secretary of State for Nature Conservation said today that Portugal and Spain have succeeded in "saving the Iberian lynx", thanks to the "success" of the reintroduction project of the species in the Iberian Peninsula, part of which is based in the Algarvian municipality of Silves. Currently there are approximately 800 living in the wild thanks to the coordinated breeding programme.

PELAGO20, a research campaign to "determine the abundance and spatial distribution of coastal pelagic fish, in particular sardines and anchovies", began on March 4th, along the Portuguese continental shelf and in the Gulf of Cadiz. The campaign takes place mainly on board the NI Miguel Oliver research vessel, which transports the researchers and technicians from the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and the Atmosphere (IPMA) responsible for the study, who are acting in cooperation with the IEO (Spanish Institute of Oceanography).

A 16-year-old teenager, a student at the Manuel Teixeira Gomes Secondary School, in Portimão, is the first confirmed case of Covid-19 in the Algarve. The girl’s mother, a teacher at a different school, has also come down with the virus, broadcaster TVI revealed, citing the mayor Isilda Gomes. The number of cases of the new coronavirus in Portugal thus rises to 31, with no recorded deaths.

Algfuturo – the Algarve Business Union has expressed concerns at the effects of Covid-19 related travel worries on the regional economy.

Faro’s Social Democratic Party (PSD) have congratulated the municipal executive following the approval, in a meeting of the Municipal Assembly at the end of last week, of the regulations for the management of the future Camping Park at Praia de Faro, in what the party is calling a victory over "the left and extreme left party forces", as well as old campsite’s clingy homeowner’s association.

National airline carrier TAP cancelled around 1,000 flights scheduled through March and April on Thursday after overblown media panic in covering the coronavirus has led to a fall in demand. An unspecified impact on revenues is expected, the airline added.

An almost completely dry month of February has not alleviated the drought situation currently causing worries in the south of the country, which is already considered to have reached an “extreme” stage across almost all of the Algarve. The lack of rain has further reduced water availability, mainly in the Guadiana Basin, largely affecting the dams in the Eastern Algarve.