Public places closed as COVID-19 cases take upward trend

Authorities call for ‘social distancing’

DUBAI: Faced with an upward trend in COVID-19 cases, the UAE government has closed, for the next two weeks beginning today, public and private beaches, parks, swimming pools and movie theatres, among others to prevent the situation from getting out of hand.

This as the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MOHAP) urged the public to observe safety measures including “social distancing.”

Coronavirus cases have been on an upswing since the first week of March, as per official government announcements – from 11 on Feb. 21 to 27 on March 3.

The numbers continued to go up with 15 cases reported on March 7; 14 on March 9; 15 on March 10; and 11 on March 12 which brought the total at 85.

The government reported 12 new COVID-19 cases on March 16 and 15 more cases on March 18.

Twenty-seven coronavirus cases were reported by MoHAP on March 19 and 13 on March 21, bring the total at 153.

On a brighter side, the number of  COVID-19 patients who have recuperated has also steadily increased in the past weeks and is now at 38. There have also been two deaths.

This at hand, the Emirates News Agency (ENA) reported that MoHAP, along with the National Emergency Crisis and Disasters Management Authority, have decided to implement the temporary closures as well as regulate the operation of restaurants, cafes, and other food and beverage (F&B) outlets for the same two-week period.

The Dubai Municipality has also implemented a massive sanitation drive covering 95 roads to be sterilized in 11 days. The drive kicked off on March 21 with the stretch of Rigga Road in Deira, Dubai being sprayed with disinfectant.

The closure policy, which is subject to re-assessment, allows restaurants and F&B outlets to continue home delivery services during the closure period.

They can also serve customers, provided only 20 percent of the seating capacity is used at any given time so that the necessary distance between people can be maintained.

A physical distance of two meters between customers, in addition to other sanitation and public hygiene measures, must be ensured. Outdoor and self-order kiosks are exempted.

The two authorities have urged all relevant federal, local, and private institutions to ensure compliance with these decisions as per the law and to roll out all necessary guidelines to boost public awareness of the new measures.

On Saturday, March 21, Dr. Farida Al Hosani,  director of the Department of Communicable Diseases urged the public to observe “social distancing.”

“The Ministry urges the general public to cooperate with health authorities and adhere to precautionary measures announced – particularly social distancing – to prevent the further spread of COVID-19 and ensure the overall health and safety of the UAE community,” she said.

The spokesperson urged people to avoid malls, beaches and restaurants and leave their homes only when necessary.

Al Hosani added that a negative COVID-19 test does not mean that individuals can socialise without precautions, but rather must adhere to the 14-day quarantine period to ensure their safety and the safety of others.

Keeping people in their homes have been found to be an effective way to contain the coronavirus pandemic. Countries which had apparently failed to swiftly implement such measures have been bearing the brunt of such failure like Italy, which has sounded the global alarm with nearly 5,000 deaths.