The Ministry of Health has announced tighter measures to minimise the further spread of Covid-19 in Singapore.
This includes safe distancing measures such as the closure of entertainment venues in Singapore, suspension of religious services, as well as limiting gatherings outside of work and school to 10 persons or fewer.
Places to be closed
All bars and entertainment venues like night clubs, discos, cinemas, theatres, and karaoke outlets, where there is a high risk of transmission due to sustained close contact over a period of time, are to close.
Apart from entertainment venues, all centre-based tuition and enrichment classes will be suspended to reduce the intermingling of students from different schools.
Organised tours in public venues (such as sightseeing or guided walking tours) will also be suspended.
This will take effect from Mar. 26, 2020, 11:59pm.
Malls to remain open if they can adhere to certain requirements
Public venues such as retail malls, museums and attractions, where contact is more transient, may remain open.
However, operators are to ensure that the venue does not have more than one person per 16 square metres of usable space.
This is to significantly reduce the density of crowds in these venues, especially during peak periods.
If malls and attractions are unable to adhere to these requirements, they must be closed.
Existing measures for F&B outlets apply
Existing measures for food and beverage venues continue to apply.
Food and beverage outlets must set up their spaces (arrangement of tables and seating) to ensure separation of at least one metre between tables or different groups of diners.
Related diners (e.g. family members, couples) can be seated together at one table, but the tables must be spaced out. Groups of diners should also be limited to 10 persons or fewer.
Patrons of eating establishments with fixed seating - for example, hawker centres and coffee shops - must use alternate seats. Premise managers should mark out seats to facilitate these arrangements.
As of Mar. 24, the total number of confirmed cases in Singapore stands at 558.
49 new cases were announced on Tuesday.
Top photo via Unsplash, Terence Ong/Wikipedia