HELSINKI, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) -- With the arrival of 12,000 new conscripts on Monday, facemasks and internal isolations returned to Finnish military barracks.

The intention is to prevent further spreading of the Adeno virus that has plagued the forces during the last year, the official military newspaper Ruotuvaki reported.

Arriving conscripts will be deployed in small cohorts that do not meet people of other cohorts during the first three weeks. The traditional "open houses" at all barracks for friends and family during the first month will be cancelled, the Defence Forces said.

Contrary to the usual profile of the Adeno, many soldiers infected with the virus have often developed serious symptoms this past autumn, the Defence Forces said. Some required intensive care.

Major Saku Silmu, head of training at a brigade in western Finland, told national radio Yle that with the measures, the risk of an uncontrolled spreading of the virus in the barracks is minimized.

The incubation time of the virus could be two weeks, he said. Besides Adeno, there have been cases of COVID-19, Mycoplasma and whooping cough, the Defence Forces said.

Finland is one of the few countries in Western Europe that have maintained a general national service. ■