Health authorities in Switzerland have ordered a quarantine for a staggering 2,500 students at a prestigious hospitality management school in the city of Lausanne after “significant outbreaks" of the coronavirus that are a suspected byproduct of off-campus partying.

Authorities in Switzerland's Vaud canton, or region, said all undergraduates at the Ecole Hoteliere de Lausanne, known as the Lausanne Hospitality Management University in English, have been ordered to quarantine both on- and off-campus because the number of COVID-19 outbreaks because targeted closures were not possible.

The World Health Organization, national health authorities and others have cautioned that young people, who tend to have milder COVID-19 symptoms than older demographic groups, have been a key driver for the continued spread of the coronavirus in recent weeks, particularly in Europe.

It noted that an early investigation showed that “one or more parties was at the origin of these many outbreaks of infection,” and reiterated authorities previous call for a ”responsible attitude" among party-goers such as by wearing masks, tracing their contacts, keeping alert for symptoms, and “social distancing.”

“Significant outbreaks of infection have appeared at several levels of training, making a more targeted closure impossible that that involving the 2,500 students affected,” the Vaud regional office said in a statement. “Until Sept. 28, the students must stay home. For some, that means not leaving their housing on the hospitality school site.”

School administrators were taking “all necessary measures” to ensure that classes were continuing online, the statement said.

University spokesman Sherif Mamdouh said Thursday that the situation was “not ideal” but that the university took precautions in recent months. He said that 11 students had tested positive for the coronavirus and none required hospitalization.

Mamdouh said the quarantine affects 2,500 undergraduates. The university has a total student body of about 3,500, including people pursuing advanced degrees. He said hundreds of students living in on-campus dormitories on campus will be subject to the quarantine.

Switzerland is not alone. The latest government figures in neighboring France show that 22% of the country’s currently active virus clusters emerged at schools are universities. The United States has also seen clusters linked to college students.

World Health Organization spokeswoman Margaret Harris said that while it is “unfair to just put it on the young people,” it's also unsurprising that teenagers and young adults might assume they don't need to worry about succumbing to the virus.

“Perceptions do indicate that they don't feel they are as at-risk as older groups” Harris said, particularly in the wake of data showing younger people typically have less-severe cases of COVID-19.

“The message they have heard is: ‘You are out of jail, go out and play,’" she said. “We don't want to be the fun police, but we want people to have fun safely.”

Also read: Coronavirus global caseload now 31,779,533

The European Union summit has been postponed for a week as EU Council President Charles Michel has gone into quarantine after a close collaborator was diagnosed with COVID-19, reports AP.

Spokesman Barend Leyts made the disclosure on Tuesday, saying “Michel today learned that a security officer, with whom he was in close contact early last week, tested positive for COVID."

Leyts said that the European Council chief is "respecting Belgian rules" and "he has gone into quarantine as of today."

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday disclosed that he ordered fresh restrictions on regular activities amid fear of a dramatic surge in confirmed coronavirus cases.

He also warned the Britons that they should not expect to return to a normal social or work life for at least six months, reports AP.

Saying Britain must act now or face a huge second wave of COVID-19, Johnson announced a package of new restrictions that includes requiring pubs, restaurants and other entertainment venues in England to close down between 10 pm and 5 am and urging people to work from home where possible.

Johnson had encouraged workers just weeks ago to go back into offices to keep city centers from becoming ghost towns, and he expressed hope that society could return to normal by Christmas. In a stark change of tone, he said Tuesday that "for the time being, this virus is a fact of our lives."

"We will spare no effort in developing vaccines, treatments and new forms of mass testing, but unless we palpably make progress, we should assume that the restrictions I have announced will remain in place for perhaps six months," Johnson told lawmakers in the House of Commons.

The announcement came a day after the government's top scientific and medical advisers said new coronavirus infections were doubling every seven days and could rise to 49,000 a day by mid-October if nothing was done to stem the tide.

On Monday, the government reported 4,300 new confirmed cases, the highest number since May and four times the number seen a month ago. Chief medical officers have raised the U.K.'s virus alert level from three to four, the second-highest rung, saying cases of COVID-19 were rising "rapidly and probably exponentially."

The new restrictions require face masks to be worn in taxis as well as on public transport. The size of some gatherings is being curtailed, with weddings limited to 15 people instead of 30, and a plan to bring spectators back into sports stadiums starting in October is being put on hold.

Johnson did not reduce the number of people who can gather indoors or out, which remains at six.

The British government is also increasing the penalties for breaking the rules. People who breach orders to quarantine face fines of up to 10,000 pounds ($12,800) and businesses that breach "COVID-secure" rules can be shut down.

The measures apply only to England. Other parts of the U.K. introduced similar curbs, but some went further in limiting social interactions.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who has often struck a more cautious note than Johnson during the pandemic, said that with a few exceptions, people would be barred from visiting others' homes, and car-sharing would be discouraged.

Sturgeon said the measure would be reviewed every three weeks but "may be needed for longer than that." She said she hoped it would be less than six months.

The new restrictions outlined by Johnson are less stringent than the nationwide lockdown imposed in March, which confined most of the population and closed most businesses. Britain eased its lockdown starting in June as cases began to fall, but that trend has now been reversed.

The prime minister said if the new curbs did not slow the outbreak, "we reserve the right to deploy greater firepower, with significantly greater restrictions."

Still, some lawmakers from Johnson's governing Conservative Party are uneasy about tightening restrictions on business and daily life, citing the impact on Britain's already-reeling economy.

To persuade people to stay home if they test positive for the virus, the government announced it would pay low-income workers 500 pounds ($639) if they are told to self-isolate for 14 days.

Businesses, especially in the areas of hospitality, sports and the arts, said they urgently needed support, too.

Kate Nicholls, chief executive of trade body UKHospitality, said before the announcement that the restrictions would be "another crushing blow" for many businesses.

But most epidemiologists believe more restrictions are again necessary and even worry that the government's plans may not go far enough.

Polls suggest a majority of people in Britain support lockdown measures to contain the virus. But they also show that trust in the Conservative government's handling of the pandemic has declined after troubles with testing, mixed messages on reopening and the U.K.'s high death toll.

Britain has the highest confirmed virus death toll in Europe, at 41,877 deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. Experts say all such tallies underestimate the true number of deaths.

While ministers tout the record numbers of tests being performed, there are widespread reports of people having to travel hundreds of miles for tests or tests being voided because it's taking labs too long to process them.

An app meant to bolster contact-tracing efforts is to be released this week after months of delay.

Jennifer Cole, a biological anthropologist at Royal Holloway University, said people's behavior is "the biggest influence" on the spread of the virus.

"In essence, the government is saying, 'Stay sober, stay sensible and the venues can stay open.' It's a carrot to encourage responsible behavior," she said.

Also read: Covid-19: Death toll surges past 5k in Bangladesh

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk, said the supply of a Russian COVID-19 vaccine to Kyrgyzstan will be considered a priority matter.

Alexey Overchuk came up with the information said here on Tuesday, reports Xinhua.

During a meeting with Kyrgyz President Sooronbai Jeenbekov, the two sides exchanged views on the current state and prospects of Kyrgyz-Russian bilateral and multilateral cooperation, including within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Union, the press service of the Kyrgyz presidency said.

Jeenbekov expressed gratitude to the Russian side for support to stabilize the epidemiological situation in the country, the provision of humanitarian aid and the allocation of a 100-million-U.S. dollar concessional loan from the Eurasian Fund to support small- and medium-sized businesses.

The Kyrgyz president stressed the importance of enhancing trade and economic relations and taking joint measures to combat the consequences of the pandemic.

Overchuk, who arrived in Kyrgyzstan to participate in a regular meeting of the Kyrgyz-Russian Intergovernmental Commission, conveyed words of greetings and good wishes from Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.

He stressed that the Russian side values bilateral relations with Kyrgyzstan, which are of a strategic and allied nature.

The Russian official noted the dynamic development of trade, economic and investment cooperation between the two countries.

Both sides expressed readiness to boost bilateral cooperation in areas of mutual interest, the report said.

Also read: The Lancet publishes Russian vaccine's phase I/II results

As the U.S. closed in on 200,000 coronavirus deaths Monday, the crisis deteriorated across Europe, with Britain working to draw up new restrictions, Spain clamping down again in Madrid and the Czech Republic replacing its health minister with an epidemiologist because of a surge of infections.

The growing push to reimpose tough new measures in Europe to beat back a scourge that was seemingly under control in the spring contributed to a sharp drop on Wall Street in the morning. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell more than 900 points, or 3.4%, and the S&P 500 was down 2.6%.

In Britain, Prime Minister Boris Johnson later this week is expected to announce a round of restrictions designed to act as a “circuit breaker” to slow the spread of the disease. British Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty warned that cases are doubling every seven days, and the experience in other countries shows that will soon lead to a rise in deaths.

“We have, in a very bad sense, literally turned a corner,” after weeks of rising infections, Whitty said, reports AP.

In France, where infections reached a record high the weekend with over 13,000 new cases in 24 hours, health authorities opened new testing centers in the Paris region to reduce lines and delays.

And the Norwegian capital of Oslo banned crowds of more than 10 people in private homes after a spike in cases and strongly urged people to wear face masks when traveling on public transportation amid a strike by bus drivers that forced many commuters to take the tram instead.

“The situation in Oslo is serious. This development must be stopped, and we have to do it now,” Mayor Raymond Johansen said.

The rise in infection rates in Britain comes as lawmakers across the political spectrum criticize the government’s testing program amid widespread reports of people having to travel hundreds of miles and tests being discarded because it is taking labs too long to process them. France, likewise, has been plagued by long wait times for results.

Police in the Spanish capital of Madrid and its surrounding towns began stopping people going in and out of working-class neighborhoods that have been partially locked down to combat Europe’s fastest coronavirus spread.

Authorities said that starting on Wednesday, some 860,000 residents must be able to show that their trips out of their neighborhoods are justified for work, study or medical reasons or face fines. Parks are closed and shops and restaurants in the affected zones are limited to 50% occupancy.

The targeted locations have some of the highest transmission rates in Europe. The measure has been met with protests from people who think the restrictions are stigmatizing the poor.

The German city of Munich, with one of the highest infection rates in Germany, will allow only up to five people or members of two households to meet, and will restrict private indoor gatherings such as birthday parties, weddings or funerals to no more than 25 people.

Also read:Covid-19 in Bangladesh: Caseload exceeds 3.5 lakh; deaths near 5k 

The Czech Republic also faces the possibility of new restrictions after the government appointed epidemiologist Roman Prymula as health minister.

In the spring, the country recorded a relatively low number of COVID-19 cases and deaths compared with hard-hit Western European countries such as Italy, Spain and Britain.

But after the government lifted most of its restrictions over the summer, confirmed cases began making a comeback and reached a record high last week. On Thursday, the day-to-day increase of new cases was higher than 3,000, almost the same number it was in the entire month of March.

Prymula said over the weekend that the loosening of restrictions was done too quickly.