Officials to reimplement virus measures as cases rise in Istanbul

ISTANBUL

As cases infected with the COVID-19 are on the rise in Istanbul and several other provinces, Turkish authorities have prepared a three-point plan for the reimplementation of the measures taken during the first months of the pandemic.

The move came after cases in Istanbul have seen a rapid increase where authorities have determined that many residents have been ignoring virus measures and attending crowded social events.

Some 160 hospitals in Istanbul have also been ordered to open a pandemic department while non-emergency surgeries have been requested to be postponed, according to Hürriyet daily.

The country’s Health Minister Fahrettin Koca has reiterated his warnings against the virus after a series of meetings held in Istanbul, which is home to some 16 million people battling with a new virus wave.

“From public transportation to the marketplace, we brought up [to agenda] the solution to the crowd-sourced spread [of the virus],” he said, following a meeting on Oct. 26 with the city’s officials.

The number of coronavirus cases in Istanbul, the country’s largest city by population, accounts for 40 percent of all infections in Turkey, the country’s Koca said on Oct. 23.

The measures in the first months of the pandemic will be reimplemented due to the increasing number of cases seen with the arrival of the flu season.

The state or municipalities will prepare the precautionary infrastructure for those who do not have a chance to work from home, according to the plan.

The limits to be imposed on the number of people using public transport and the rules such as “taking a certain number of people to indoor spaces” will be redefined.

Businesses will not be closed, but customer and working time limits will be imposed on certain places within the framework of public inspection.

The importance of using masks, social distance rules and hygiene measures will be emphasized again.

Warnings will be made to the public not to choose businesses that do not comply with the rules.