South Korean officials are stepping up efforts to ensure that people stick to social distancing guidelines during Halloween, warning that this year’s celebrations “could really turn scary,” as it tries to avoid another resurgence in COVID-19 infections.
Officials have been patrolling nightclubs in Seoul to make sure that people adhere to social distancing rules and are advising people to host Halloween parties online, Seoul public health director Park Yoo-mi said yesterday.
“Don’t end up a real ghost while enjoying Halloween,” reads one Seoul Government-issued poster.
Photo: AFP
Another warned that this year’s party “could really turn scary.”
South Korea has been praised for quick and effective action against the COVID-19 pandemic, but in May saw a resurgence in cases after an outbreak linked to nightclubs and bars in Seoul.
The city government has dispatched officials and police to 153 nightclubs ahead of this weekend to make sure that facilities follow strict guidelines and visitors log in names and use quick response (QR) code systems for contract tracing, Park said.
Fourteen nightclubs in the city have already been shut after failing to adhere to social distancing guidelines and for hosting more people than they are allowed to, Park said.
“The city plans to reap immediate results from prevention measures by ordering a two-week ban on gatherings for the facilities that violate the guidelines,” she added.
Park urged other businesses to join the 85 night venues in the city which have said that they would voluntarily shut their doors during Halloween to protect against the spread of COVID-19.
South Korea has used aggressive testing and contact tracing to contain the virus, which has nationwide infected 26,385 people and killed 463, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency data showed.
The agency has over the past few weeks confirmed about 100 new cases every day.
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