Hapcheon-gun Raises Social Distancing to Level 3 ... Nighttime Drinking and Food Consumption Prohibited

Hapcheon County Office building.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] Hapcheon-gun, Gyeongnam Province, will raise the social distancing level to Level 3 from the 27th of this month until the 8th of next month.

This follows the government's decision to raise the social distancing level to Level 3 in non-metropolitan areas. The government decided to apply Level 3 to non-metropolitan areas to block the spread of COVID-19 due to the surge in cases outside the metropolitan area, the balloon effect caused by the metropolitan area's outbreak, and concerns about spread from interregional movement during the holiday season.

Under Level 3, entertainment facilities, restaurants, and cafes can operate only until 10 p.m. After that, only takeout and delivery are allowed. Religious facilities may allow only 20% of their capacity (with four seats spaced apart), and all gatherings, events, meals, and accommodations are prohibited.

The current ban on private gatherings of five or more people will also be extended until the 8th of next month, and all events, assemblies, weddings, and funerals will be limited to fewer than 50 people.

Additional special quarantine measures applied with this Level 3 include excluding vaccinated individuals from the headcount and suspending rewards for not wearing masks outdoors.

It is strongly recommended to conduct proactive testing for entertainment facility managers and workers once every two weeks, and it has been made mandatory that only those who test negative for COVID-19 can work at these establishments.

Hapcheon-gun has issued administrative orders mandating mask-wearing and prohibiting nighttime drinking and food consumption at Hwangmaesan County Park, Jeongyang Leisure Sports Park, and 10 local water play areas, which are frequently visited by outside visitors.

County Governor Moon Jun-hee stated, “Considering the nationwide and Gyeongnam COVID-19 case situation and the recent confirmed cases in our county, administrative orders have been issued. We ask for your understanding that these measures are to prevent the spread of infection within the region,” and appealed, “We hope everyone actively cooperates so that we can overcome the current crisis as soon as possible.”