*Image Credit: George Vitsaras
The night curfew in Greece remains in force, despite the easing of covid-19 lockdown restrictions.
On Monday, retail shops and hair salons reopened for the first time in more than two months.
Furthermore, supermarkets have had to reduce the number of customers they serve at any one time by up to 60% due to the stricter measures.
The curfew runs from 9pm-5am.
If people breach the measures, they face on the spot fines of €500 and up to €1000 for businesses.
Speaking on SKAI radio, Athens University microbiology professor Alkiviadis Vatopoulos, who is member of the committee advising the Greek government on pandemic management, said there are no plans to lift the curfew as it helps “reduce unnecessary crowding.”
Vatopoulos is in favour of allowing outdoor activities such as fishing and hunting, but expressed reservations about lifting a ban on traveling between prefectures.
On Monday, Development Minister Adonis Georgiadis said the government was considering allowing people to travel between regional units so they can visit ski resorts.
Regarding bars and restaurants, Vatopoulos said authorities want to assess the epidemiological impact of retail activity before making a decision.
Greece recorded 516 new cases of COVID-19 in the latest 24-hour reporting period.
This raises the total number of cases to 149,973.
5,805 are considered to be related to travel from abroad and 46,011 are related to an already known case.
Three hundred individuals are in ICU. Their median age is 68 years. 86.7% have an underlying condition or are aged 70 years and above.
A total of 1.044 patients have been discharged from ICUs since the start of the pandemic in Greece.
The country’s pandemic death toll stands at 5,548. The median age of all was 79 years and 95.4% of the deceased had an underlying condition and/or age of 70 years or more.
All individuals residing in Greece will be required to send an SMS text message to 13033 in order to obtain permission to leave their homes during the lockdown.
The SMS to 13033 should be formatted as follows: X (one of the digits 1-6 corresponding to the activities below), name, surname and address.