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Photos: Coronavirus outbreak accentuates isolation of Spain’s homeless

While Spanish authorities are telling people to stay at home amid the COVID-19 outbreak, some are having to stay on the street -- because they have no choice. In typically bustling Barcelona, figures with boxes and blankets, mattresses or tents, punctuate the eerie emptiness. The bare sidewalks and doorways of shuttered shops where they bed down during a national health emergency accentuate the isolation of the city's homeless population, of about 1,000.

Updated on: Mar 27, 2020 3:01 PM IST

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1/11

Boris, 42, from Bulgaria, sleeps under a blanket in the street in Barcelona, Spain. While Spanish authorities tell the public that staying home is the best way to beat the coronavirus pandemic, some people are staying out because home has come to mean the streets of Madrid and Barcelona. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

Updated on Mar 27, 2020 3:01 PM

Boris, 42, from Bulgaria, sleeps under a blanket in the street in Barcelona, Spain. While Spanish authorities tell the public that staying home is the best way to beat the coronavirus pandemic, some people are staying out because home has come to mean the streets of Madrid and Barcelona. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

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A blanket is used as a shelter in the corner of a square in downtown Barcelona. With Spain one of the world's worst-hit countries by the new coronavirus, and the government ordering a national lockdown, the country's streets are largely deserted. Authorities are scrambling to get as many homeless people off the streets without cramming them into a group shelter, where the risk of getting infected could be even greater. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

Updated on Mar 27, 2020 3:01 PM

A blanket is used as a shelter in the corner of a square in downtown Barcelona. With Spain one of the world's worst-hit countries by the new coronavirus, and the government ordering a national lockdown, the country's streets are largely deserted. Authorities are scrambling to get as many homeless people off the streets without cramming them into a group shelter, where the risk of getting infected could be even greater. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

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Gana Gutierrez sits in an empty street in Barcelona, Spain. “It is as if there has been a nuclear explosion and they are all sheltering in the bunker. Only us, the homeless, are left out”, 36-year-old Gana told AP. Having lived on the street for more than 8 years he commented that the slogan, “quedateencasa” (Stayathome) is only for those who have a roof over their heads but not for them. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

Updated on Mar 27, 2020 3:01 PM

Gana Gutierrez sits in an empty street in Barcelona, Spain. “It is as if there has been a nuclear explosion and they are all sheltering in the bunker. Only us, the homeless, are left out”, 36-year-old Gana told AP. Having lived on the street for more than 8 years he commented that the slogan, “quedateencasa” (Stayathome) is only for those who have a roof over their heads but not for them. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

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Nasir, 37, from Pakistan, sleeps in an empty street in Barcelona, Spain. Spain, which ranks fourth worldwide among the countries with the most virus cases, is under a government-imposed lockdown that has closed stores, emptied office buildings and left cities largely deserted, day and night. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

Updated on Mar 27, 2020 3:01 PM

Nasir, 37, from Pakistan, sleeps in an empty street in Barcelona, Spain. Spain, which ranks fourth worldwide among the countries with the most virus cases, is under a government-imposed lockdown that has closed stores, emptied office buildings and left cities largely deserted, day and night. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

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Jose sleeps in the street in downtown Barcelona, Spain. Jose, 27, has been sleeping in the street for 5 years and is convinced that the Spanish army will put all the beggars of the city in tents “I refuse! I am not going to be infested with the virus anywhere, I am safe here in the arcade,” he said. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

Updated on Mar 27, 2020 3:01 PM

Jose sleeps in the street in downtown Barcelona, Spain. Jose, 27, has been sleeping in the street for 5 years and is convinced that the Spanish army will put all the beggars of the city in tents “I refuse! I am not going to be infested with the virus anywhere, I am safe here in the arcade,” he said. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

6/11

A man from sub-Saharan Africa sits on a bench at an empty car park outside the train station in Barcelona. In typically bustling Barcelona, figures with boxes and blankets, mattresses or tents, punctuate the eerie emptiness. The bare sidewalks and doorways of shuttered shops where they bed down during a national health emergency accentuate the isolation of the city’s homeless population, of about 1,000. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

Updated on Mar 27, 2020 3:01 PM

A man from sub-Saharan Africa sits on a bench at an empty car park outside the train station in Barcelona. In typically bustling Barcelona, figures with boxes and blankets, mattresses or tents, punctuate the eerie emptiness. The bare sidewalks and doorways of shuttered shops where they bed down during a national health emergency accentuate the isolation of the city’s homeless population, of about 1,000. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

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Riccardo, 32, sits in an empty arcade that overlooks Las Ramblas, the pedestrian avenue that is a Barcelona landmark. “I thought I had seen everything during all these years sleeping in the street, but no. This silence on the street all day scares me... more than the virus itself ...” said Riccardo, 32, who has been sleeping on the street for more than 10 years. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

Updated on Mar 27, 2020 3:01 PM

Riccardo, 32, sits in an empty arcade that overlooks Las Ramblas, the pedestrian avenue that is a Barcelona landmark. “I thought I had seen everything during all these years sleeping in the street, but no. This silence on the street all day scares me... more than the virus itself ...” said Riccardo, 32, who has been sleeping on the street for more than 10 years. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

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A man covered with a blanket sleeps in an empty street in Barcelona. The sprawling IFEMA exhibition centre in Madrid has been converted into a makeshift shelter with 150 beds. In Barcelona, an old school was turned into a temporary shelter for 56 people, and officials promise to make more beds available soon. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

Updated on Mar 27, 2020 3:01 PM

A man covered with a blanket sleeps in an empty street in Barcelona. The sprawling IFEMA exhibition centre in Madrid has been converted into a makeshift shelter with 150 beds. In Barcelona, an old school was turned into a temporary shelter for 56 people, and officials promise to make more beds available soon. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

9/11

Kevin, 32, from France, plays guitar in front of a supermarket in Barcelona. Kevin, who has slept on the streets of Barcelona for the last 4 years said “I used to earn enough money to eat every day, now I don't get even one meal a day. Now I play the guitar just for me as nobody is in the street.” (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

Updated on Mar 27, 2020 3:01 PM

Kevin, 32, from France, plays guitar in front of a supermarket in Barcelona. Kevin, who has slept on the streets of Barcelona for the last 4 years said “I used to earn enough money to eat every day, now I don't get even one meal a day. Now I play the guitar just for me as nobody is in the street.” (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

10/11

Javier Redondo, 40, covers his head with his hands as he waits for alms on an empty street in Barcelona. Many of the city’s day centres for the homeless and soup kitchens have closed or reduced their hours during the lockdown. “I am not afraid of the virus because my physical condition is very good. If I caught the virus, my body would expel it as if it were a gastroenteritis”, Javier said. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

Updated on Mar 27, 2020 3:01 PM

Javier Redondo, 40, covers his head with his hands as he waits for alms on an empty street in Barcelona. Many of the city’s day centres for the homeless and soup kitchens have closed or reduced their hours during the lockdown. “I am not afraid of the virus because my physical condition is very good. If I caught the virus, my body would expel it as if it were a gastroenteritis”, Javier said. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

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A woman pushes a cart with her belongings as she walks along an empty street in downtown Barcelona. Those sleeping rough in Barcelona agree on one thing: panhandling for money or food is pointless now because there’s nobody around to give them anything. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

Updated on Mar 27, 2020 3:01 PM

A woman pushes a cart with her belongings as she walks along an empty street in downtown Barcelona. Those sleeping rough in Barcelona agree on one thing: panhandling for money or food is pointless now because there’s nobody around to give them anything. (Emilio Morenatti / AP)

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