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Level 2 COVID alert extended; national parks, swimming pools to reopen

ROC Central News Agency

08/09/2021 07:35 PM

Taipei, Aug. 9 (CNA) Taiwan's current COVID-19 Level 2 alert will be extended to Aug. 23, while swimming pools and national parks will be allowed to reopen conditionally starting Tuesday, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) announced Monday.

CECC head and Health Minister Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) said the government decided to retain the Level 2 alert, which was originally set to expire on Monday, after consulting with other agencies involved in the COVID-19 response.

But the CECC will consider further relaxing COVID-related restrictions currently in place in the near future as long as domestic cases continue to stay low, he said.

Among the restrictions set to be eased Tuesday, Chen said swimming pools will be allowed to reopen at reduced capacity, but showers, saunas and children's pools will remain closed.

All national forest recreation areas, forestry culture parks, nature and ecology education centers, some mountain huts, and the Alishan Forest Railway will be allowed to reopen at reduced capacity starting Tuesday as well, according to the CECC.

These facilities, as well as all entertainment and sports venues have been closed since the CECC raised the nationwide COVID-19 alert to Level 3 on May 19 amid a spike in new domestic cases to more than 100 a day.

The COVID-19 alert was lowered to Level 2 on July 27 after a month of reporting fewer than 100 domestically transmitted cases per day.

According to the new Level 2 guidelines launched on July 27, as many as 50 people are allowed to gather indoors and 100 people outdoors, up from the maximum of four indoors and nine outdoors that had been in place since May 19.

Weddings, funerals and religious activities are now permitted except for religious processions, and dine-in services are allowed if restaurants set up plastic shields between tables and make sure that customers observe social distancing, the guidelines said.

All Taiwan residents, however, must still wear face masks at all times when not at home except when eating.

Several venues still remain closed, including hostess bars, night clubs, ballrooms, and karaoke bars (KTVs) as well as amusement arcades, the CECC said.

The eased restrictions will also not extend to border controls, which remain strict because of a recent surge of COVID-19 cases abroad due to the Delta variant of the virus, according to the CECC.

Currently, foreign nationals are not allowed to enter Taiwan, except for those with residency in Taiwan or who have special permission from the authorities.

All those who do enter, including those who are fully vaccinated, must spend 14 days in quarantine upon arrival.

To date, Taiwan has recorded a total of 15,790 COVID-19 cases including 813 deaths since early 2020, of which 14,279 are domestic infections reported since May 15, when the country first recorded more than 100 COVID-19 cases in a single day.

(By Chang Ming-hsuan, Chen Chieh-ling and Joseph Yeh)

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