ARCHIVED - Interior of bars and restaurants can re-open in 37 municipalities from Wednesday

8 municipalities have been confined again from Wednesday

The interiors may only open to 30 per cent of capacity and sitting at the bar continues to be prohibited

On Saturday the Murcia Region reached a level of hospitalisations which enabled the Covid Monitoring Committee meeting on Monday to relax restrictions a little further and return the region to phase 1, the same level as was reached in December before the third wave erupted.

Although the situation has improved considerably in the last week in most of the region, the decision has been taken for eight municipalities to return to a situation of extreme alert, which implies the return of the confinement restrictions applied during January.

This affects the two municipalities which were confined last week; Alhama de Murcia and Ulea, to which a further six municipalities have now been added; Abarán, Caravaca de la Cruz, Ceutí, Fuente Álamo, Puerto Lumbreras and Torre Pacheco.

In these eight municipalities the municipal borders are closed again and residents must stay within their home municipality; equally, non-residents are not permitted to enter these municiplities for the next week other than for essential reasons. However, it has now been confirmed that bars and restaurants within these eight municipalities can open their external terraces, so at least residents can go down to the bar and have a coffee.

The decision taken by the Committee is to permit the interiors of bars and restaurants in the remaining 37 municipalities to open their terraces to 100 per cent of their capacity and the interior of bars and restaurants to 30 per cent of their capacity.

The 37 municipalities which are permitted to open terraces 100 per cent and the interior of the restaurant 30 per cent are:
• Abanilla
• Águilas
• Albudeite
• Alcantarilla
• Los Alcázares
• Aledo
• Alguazas
• Archena
• Beniel
• Blanca
• Bullas
• Calasparra
• Campos del Río
• Cartagena
• Cehegín
• Cieza
• Fortuna
• Jumilla
• Librilla
• Lorca
• Lorquí
• Mazarrón
• Molina de Segura
• Moratalla
• Mula
• Murcia
• Ojós
• Pliego
• Ricote
• San Javier
• San Pedro del Pinatar
• Santomera
• Las Torres de Cotillas
• Totana
• La Unión
• Villanueva del Río Segura
• Yecla

Service at the bar continues to be prohibited, so clients must be seated at a table and may not consume food or drink at the bar.

The quantity of four people permitted to gather continues this week, so four people are permitted to gather and eat together on the terrace of a restaurant, providing they live in one of the 37 municipalities which are NOT in the extreme group. Masks must be worn unless specifically eating or drinking, so between consumption of food or beverages, masks must be worn.

A co-habiting family, which may consist, for example, of two adults and three children, may eat together at the same table on an exterior terrace.

The number of people permitted to eat at a table inside a bar or restaurant has been limited to two people and the restaurant can only accommodate 30 per cent maximum occupancy inside.

The exterior perimeter border closure for the Region of Murcia has been maintained for the moment, as has the curfew, which continues from 10 p.m nightly.

The measures will take effect from midnight on Tuesday, ie on Wednesday and will be reviewed again next Monday.