SEOUL – South Korea is tightening social distancing restrictions in the greater capital area, requiring restaurants to provide only deliveries and takeouts after 9:00 p.m. and shutting down gyms and after-school academies.
Health Minister Park Neung-hoo announced the steps Friday after 371 new infections of COVID-19 — the 15th straight day of triple-digit jumps that brought national totals to 19,077 cases, including 316 deaths.
The measures, imposed for eight days starting Sunday, will require restaurants and bakeries to provide only delivery and takeout meals from 9:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. and enforce mask wearing, distance between tables as well as keep customer lists when they do accommodate diners.
Franchised coffee shops, such as Starbucks, can provide only takeout drinks and food. Indoor sports facilities such as fitness gyms and billiard halls will be shut while after-school academies will only be allowed to provide remote learning. Visitors will be banned from nursing homes. (AP)
