14ymedio, Juan Diego Rodríguez, Havana, 10 September 2020 — The Cienfuegos authorities have closed the provincial borders due to the fear that the coronavirus will sneak in from neighboring Villa Clara, Matanzas and Sancti Spíritus, which are, along with Havana and Ciego de Ávila (at a greater distance) are the provinces with the most cases of Covid-19.
Maridé Fernández López, president of the Municipal Defense Council (CDM), announced this Wednesday that more rigorous controls will be established at the borders to ensure that no person from another territory will be able to shop in Cienfuegos. The province thus prevents entry to those who come to purchase basic necessities.
Fernández López recalled, however, that those who reside in Cienfuegos without their address on their ID card, may acquire a document that includes it, to allow them to access the Caribe, Cimex and Caracol Stores, which require shoppers to show their ID to make purchases.
The CDM approved other measures, such as the mandatory use of a mask in all spaces — with non-compliance penalized with the appropriate sanctions to control the spread of an epidemic — and the limitation of some leisure services. “We have agreed that from today all evening activities in Cienfuegos recreational centers are suspended,” explained Fernández López.
Starting now, the bars will have limited hours until ten o’clock at night, functioning as cafeterias and the activities of the Los Pinitos Recreation Center, as well as a Telmary concert, agreed for this weekend will be held at the Terry Theater Café.
Fernández López also asked Health professionals to increase active surveillance measures “both in residential and in educational institutions, where no one can enter with respiratory symptoms.”
There was no lack of the already habitual placing of responsibilities on the population. Dr. Danay Miranda Fernández, a health official in the municipality, said she was concerned about the “ignoring of measures such as hand disinfection, the absence of the foot sanitizers at building entries, and the absence of mask wearing among in the personnel in establishments that offer services to the population.”
In addition, this Thursday, the digital edition of the provincial newspaper 5 de Septembre opens with a note on the “monitoring of social indiscipline” in which it describes the sanctions imposed in the province.
According to data from the Provincial Center for Hygiene, Epidemiology and Microbiology (CPHEM), between August 31 and September 6, more than a thousand inspections were carried out aimed at supervising compliance with the measures of use of masks in lines, stores, hospitals and tourist establishments and 252 Legal penalties were imposed.
The information contains data on sanctions in areas other than health, such as traffic or licenses for private establishments.
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