AS businesses and shopping malls in Bahrain remain open during the Eid Al Fitr holiday, the country’s senior health officials have warned against gatherings amongst friends and family.
Health Ministry Under-Secretary Dr Waleed Al Manea has stressed the importance of adhering to health and safety precautions, as Eid is celebrated tomorrow, in order to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
Among the new measures issued are limiting gatherings to the immediate family in a household, maintaining social distancing and avoiding visiting relatives and friends during the Eid holiday.
Commercial and industrial businesses have been allowed to continue operations under strict guidelines, while all non-essential medical services have resumed operations.
Under the new measures, outdoor cinemas will be allowed to set up in the country, professional athletes have been allowed to resume training in outdoor spaces and swimming pools, and, as of Wednesday, all salons and barber shops will reopen.
Bahrain has been witnessing an increase in daily coronavirus cases in the last couple of weeks, from an average of 60 cases a day to an average of 200 cases a day.
“As we welcome Eid Al Fitr we call upon the people of Bahrain to abide by the decisions and precautionary measures that have been issued,” said Dr Al Manea yesterday.
“Do not turn this happy occasion into a reason for an increase in the number of cases.
“We strongly urge against visiting other people, especially amongst family, in order to prevent the spread of the virus and prevent an increase in the number of people who have contracted it.
“On Wednesday salons and barbershops will reopen as long as they abide by the regulations – we want to stress how important it is that people abide by directives and instructions to preserve everyone’s safety.”
Dr Al Manea was speaking at a Press briefing held yesterday alongside Industry, Commerce and Tourism Ministry commerce affairs under-secretary Eman Al Doseri, National Taskforce for Combating Coronavirus (Covid-19) monitoring committee head Lt Col Dr Manaf Al Qahtani and Salmaniya Medical Complex infectious and internal diseases consultant Dr Jameela Al Salman.
Ms Al Doseri explained that salons and barbershops will only be allowed to reopen under strict health and safety regulations including closing waiting areas and suspending certain services.
“The health requirements for salons and barbershops are as follows; first they must organise appointments, customers can enter only after taking an appointment and the waiting areas must be closed and all magazines removed,” she said.
“Secondly, there must be a distance of two metres between customers and the number of workers in salons and barbershops must be reduced as much as possible.
“There must also be continuous sterilisation and staff members must be assigned to sterilise the surfaces continuously and after each use.
“Thirdly, all workers in salons and barbershops must wear masks, face protector, gloves and disposable aprons, while customers must wear gloves and masks until they receive a service that requires their removal.
“The use of hair dryers is prohibited and some services will be stopped such as facials, threading, microblading, massages, semi-permanent eyelashes, and returnable hair extensions.”
She added that no food or beverages will be allowed to be served to customers, and that blades must be replaced after each use.
Under the new measures, sports facilities, gyms, movie theatres, sheesha cafés and educational institutions will remain closed until further notice, while restaurants will continue to be limited to take out and delivery services.
ghazi@gdn.com.bh
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