Date Published: 24/07/2020
ARCHIVED - Alhama de Murcia closes leisure spaces and sports facilities for at least one week as preventative measure
ARCHIVED ARTICLE
No measures are being taken which affect the hostelry sector
NB; Please note. The only venues affected are those which are mentioned in this article and are publicly run venues. NO other sporting venues are affected, neither are those run by private companies operating in the area, or on the urbanisations or in the Sierra Espuña.
Alhama de Murcia is NOT going into lockdown and neither is anywhere else in the Murcia Region at the moment. There is obviously a significant amount of mis-information being spread on social media; unfortunately there are less and less people inclined to actually read articles these days which is a great shame as a HUGE amount of effort is put into researching and writing them in English for the benefit of non-Spanish speakers. Locking down a municipality is not something which is done lightly and will ONLY be done should there be a significant public health risk and a major outbreak. This is NOT the case anywhere other than Totana for the next week. The situation in Totana will be reviewed within 7 days.
On Thursday the regional health authority of the Murcia Region took the decision to put the municipality of Totana, in south-west Murcia, into confinement, following a major outbreak related to a pub frequented principally by the Latin-American residents of the municipality and surrounding areas for at least one week.
By lunchtime on Friday the number of cases in Totana had risen to 85, with more expected to be detected in the next few days following a period of intensive testing.
Totana and Alhama de Murcia share a long border, and the council of Alhama is naturally concerned about the proximity of the outbreak and the possibility that residents from Totana may breach the confinement and move across into Alhama and circulate in public spaces.
For this reason an emergency session of the Municipal Operational Coordination Center (CECOPAL) was held on Friday morning to analyze the situation arising from the outbreak of infections in Totana and take new preventive measures to adopt in Alhama.
Thus, it has decided to carry out the following restrictions as of midnight on Friday 24th July and for at least the next seven days:
- Closure of all children's play areas in the municipality and its districts, as well as the Skate Park in Nueva Espuña, the bio-healthy games and the petanque courts.
- Closure of free access sports courts located in the urban area and districts.
- Closure of sports facilities: The Guadalentín sports complex, including the summer pool, and the Praíco sports center.
- Suspension of the summer cinema.
- Closure of the local de ensayo.
- Closure of the social centers in the outlying districts.
- Limitation of the weekly market exclusively to food products.
- The two covered sports pavilions and the heated pool are still closed.
The Town Hall, the Social Services center and the rest of the municipal offices and services will remain open as they have done to date, complying with capacity, safety and hygiene regulations.
Specific measures applicable to other sectors of activity, such as hospitality, commerce, places of worship, celebrations, wakes, etc. will continue to be regulated by the Covid prevention regulations of the Autonomous Region and the exisiting conditions continue to apply.
The Department of Health of Alhama de Murcia Council would like to remind all residents of the need to scrupulously comply with the measures adopted, with the aim of avoiding the spread of the virus.
In the coming days, Civil Protection volunteers will be driving through the streets of Alhama using vehicles equipped with a public address system to reinforce this message.
Anyone with symptoms compatible with the virus should immediately call the toll-free number 900 12 12 12 and follow instructions. Do NOT go to a health centre if you think you have Covid symptoms.