Maldives Police Service announced Thursday that the Sinamale Bridge will be restricted to the public from 0100 - 0900 hrs for a period of 14 days, from May 15.
According to the police, this restriction is part of the new control measures to be implemented for two weeks, in the wider effort to contain a possible surge of COVID-19 in Maldives.
However, the police noted that essential public services and all security forces are exempt from the new bridge restriction.
Amidst the lockdown imposed across the Greater Male' Region due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this marks the first such restriction imposed upon the Sinamale Bridge, which connects capital Male' to the airport island Hulhule' and, via a highway, to the reclaimed suburb of Hulhumale'.
The lockdown, first declared on April 15 after a Maldivian national living in the capital tested positive for COVID-19, has been extended multiple times since. The latest extension, announced this Wednesday, places its deadline on May 28.
Meanwhile, medical experts have warned of a possible COVID-19 surge in Maldives in the immediate future, and cautioned everyone to be vigilant, wary and adhere to safe practices.
Maldives now records a total of 968 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 924 active cases, four fatalities and a total of 40 recoveries. The capital city Malé, one of the most densely populated places in the world, has recorded a significant increase in COVID-19 cases since recording its first local transmission.
The new strain of novel coronavirus has infected over 4.4 million people and claimed over 298,700 lives around the world. However, out of those infected, 1.6 million people have recovered.
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