Bars, clubs, discos, and betting shops will close in the Romanian capital after a spike in Covid-19 cases, authorities said Wednesday, a day when the capital posted 514 new cases.
Masks will also be mandatory within a 50-meter radius of schools, Bucharest prefect Gheorghe Cojan said. Initially, authorities wanted masks to be compulsory within a 100-meter radius.
Betting shops which sell tickets can stay open as customers spend a limited amount of time there compared to shops with betting machines where people can stay for hours.
On Tuesday, authorities said restaurants and cafes in Bucharest will close due to the recent rise in cases. Restaurants with outdoor seating will be allowed to stay open.
The new restrictions were announced after cases soared in the Romanian capital. After reporting an average of about 200 cases a day, numbers began to rise, and Bucharest posted 514 new cases on Wednesday, the third highest daily figure ever. The all-time record of 562 cases was on Monday.
„Restrictive measures are inevitable. The quicker they are introduced, the sonner we will produce results,” President Klaus Iohannis said on Wednesday.
Authorities are considering localized lockdowns and quarantines in districts where there are more than 3 cases per 1,000 inhabitants. There are currently 1.86 cases per 1,000 residents in the city of more than two million.
“We don’t need to close down the whole country. If there are outbreaks in certain places, that is where we will take action,” the president said.
“Things are going well, but if we are not careful, the disease will be quicker than us,” Mr. Iohannis said, explaining why the new restrictions were necessary.
