Latin America Cities Bustle Like Covid Is Gone, But It’s Not
- Data show rush hours returning, bars, shops and beaches packed
- Region with 8% of global population represents 33% fatalities
Visitors wearing protective masks have their temperatures taken outside of the Museum of Tomorrow, during its reopening in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Sept. 5.
Photographer: Andre Coelho/BloombergRush hour is back with a vengeance in Mexico City, diners have returned to restaurants in Bogota and joggers have flocked to Buenos Aires’s parks. In Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, crowds have packed bars, beaches and even the sprawling fake lawn beneath Alphabet Inc’s regional headquarters.
In Latin America’s big cities, as in other places around the globe, it almost feels like the virus never happened. But it’s especially noteworthy because the region, with 8% of the world’s population, accounts for a third of infections and fatalities. Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Mexico and Argentina are all in the top 10 worst-hit countries in the world.