Panic buying has set in in Italy as Covid-19 cases soar.

Italy has the highest reported numbers of the coronavirus outside of China, and the government has announced a total lockdown on March 9.

A buying frenzy has been reported in various parts of Italy, where people are apparently wiping supermarket shelves clean.

One man in Italy, however, has provided some much-needed perspective amidst the panic.

Panic, pasta & WW2

In a video of a news clip from Euro News, an elderly man said to be an Italian resident was interviewed by the media at a supermarket.

He seemed to be rather annoyed by this panic-buying phenomenon, and pointed out, "The pasta shelves are empty."

"What's happening?" He asked, as he appeared to leave the store.

Visibly irritated, he then added, "There wasn't this much panic when World War II started. My goodness!"

The clip of this elderly man has since gone viral, with people re-sharing it on Twitter on Facebook:

Coronavirus has crossed the line for Italians https://t.co/wmI41MKZZn

— Taylor ☾ (@tastefullytayy) March 9, 2020

The pasta shelves are empty and this man is over it #coronavirus #italy https://t.co/H20Fbk7CT4

— ian bremmer (@ianbremmer) March 11, 2020

https://twitter.com/ztsamudzi/status/1237627361526513665

Top photo via Euronews video.