The state of alert, extended in Romania

The state of alert will be tailored to the new circumstances and according to the development of the epidemiological situation, the officials in Bucharest have specified.

Daniela Budu, 17.08.2020, 12:44

The state of alert is
still in place in Romania for the fourth month running. The Government decided
on a 30-day extension period for the state of alert, because of the reported
number of COVID-19 infections which has been on the rise as of late. No further
restrictions have been imposed, as supplementary measures to contain the spread
of the new Coronavirus. However, outdoor restaurants will officially stay open
until midnight, that is one hour more than initially stipulated, when outdoor
restaurants had to close at 23:00 pm. Also, the economic operators managing
such premises will have to make sure the number of customers on their premises
does not exceed the number of available chairs. Physical interaction, dancing
included, will also be limited. Serving customers is still forbidden in such
indoor premises as restaurants, cafes or other places of public gathering.

Wearing the protection
mask remains compulsory in crowded open public areas, such as markets, fairs,
bus stops, seafront promenades, pilgrimage areas or public festivities. Divine
services, as stipulated before, can be performed inside or outside worship premises.
However, sanitary protection measures are still to be complied with. Free
access is granted to undeveloped beaches, with at least 2-meter distancing to
be maintained between two persons, save for the members of the same family. We
should also mention that since the outbreak of the pandemic, a record high in
the number of infections was reported last week, twice as many cases for one
single day, in terms of COVID-19 contaminations but also in terms of deaths.

Healthcare Minister Nelu Tataru:

The
summer season is in full swing, while relaxation is at its highest. We are at a
time when we deal with an appreciable number of infection cases, we’ve been
carrying tests on an extensive scale for COVID-19 infection suspects and a side
effect of that will be the great number of people who test positive for the
infection. What’s most important for us is to maintain the capability to manage
infection cases in the context of clinical symptoms and here I’m mainly
speaking about cases of medium difficulty, but also about severe and most
serious cases, requiring Intensive Care Unit therapy, where our resources are
limited.

Healthcare Minister
Nelu Tataru went on to say that in hospitals countrywide, more than 1,000 beds
were available in Intensive Care Units, with mechanical ventilators in place
for patients in highly critical condition. Nelu Tataru also specified that across
the country, the counties where tourism is developed as well as the places
where commuters are in great numbers have seen the highest rate of infections.
Notwithstanding, Minister Tataru believes that in the coming period, the number
of infections with the new Coronavirus will become steady and a gradual
decrease in the number of contaminations is likely to occur afterwards. Nelu
Tataru went on to say it all depended on the extent to which people were willing
to comply with the hygiene measures, they need to wear the protection masks and
maintain social distancing. So far, the reported number of medically confirmed
COVID-19 infections has exceeded 70,000 since the outbreak of the pandemic in
late February this year. Almost half of the infected people have been declared
healed. The COVID-19 virus has claimed the lives of almost three thousand
people in Romania.

(Translation by Eugen Nasta)