By / Fresh Reports from Spotasia
The Central Epidemic Command Center announced on April 9 that there were two new domestic cases, bringing the total to 382, all of which were imported. One additional death was reported, bringing the total to six. Starting April 10, crowd control measures will also be enforced at popular tourist spots prone to congestion.
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[Domestic Epidemic Situation]
On April 10, two new imported COVID-19 (Wuhan pneumonia) cases were reported domestically: a woman in her 20s (Case 381) and a man in his 60s (Case 382). Case 381, who was studying in the United States, entered Taiwan on March 30. Ten passengers from the same flight have already tested positive, so she was reclassified from a home quarantine subject to a home isolation subject. She developed symptoms such as a runny nose, nasal congestion, and anosmia on April 5, sought medical attention arranged by health authorities on April 7, and was confirmed positive today. To date, a total of 11 people from that flight have tested positive.
The Command Center stated that Case 382 traveled to Indonesia with Case 378 (his wife) from February 16 to March 29 to visit relatives. Upon returning to Taiwan, he underwent home quarantine. After his wife tested positive, he was reclassified as a contact under home isolation. Case 382 had shown no symptoms since returning. On April 7, health authorities arranged testing for contacts, and he was confirmed positive today.
[Crowd Control Measures]
During the Qingming holiday, many tourist attractions were packed with visitors. After the holiday ended, the number of suspected cases reported for testing increased. To prevent potential infection chains from threatening domestic epidemic prevention efforts, the Command Center announced that, starting immediately, famous tourist attractions, national parks, amusement parks, night markets, temples, and other crowded public venues will implement crowd control measures. Businesses, shops, management units, and the public are urged to cooperate in safeguarding public health.
The Command Center pointed out that for night markets, traditional markets, and commercial districts, besides requiring vendors and consumers to wear masks at all times, the self-governing bodies of night markets or markets and business district organizations should propose crowd control plans based on the social distancing guidelines issued by the Command Center. These include setting up single-entry and -exit points, canceling food sampling activities, and maintaining safe distances between booths. For seating arrangements at booths, if effective separation isn’t possible, barriers can be used. Popular booths should also have ground markings to help maintain safe queuing distances. The Ministry of Economic Affairs will soon select demonstration sites and produce videos for business reference.
The Command Center stated that for national scenic areas, national parks, and national forest recreation areas—due to their varying sizes and characteristics—both common and individual control principles will be set. The common principle is to use surrounding parking lots as key traffic control points. If parking lot capacity reaches 50%, location-based SMS alerts will be sent to warn the public and suggest altering their plans. Road systems nearby will also be considered to redirect traffic.
Regarding the tourism accommodation sector, the Tourism Bureau of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications will conduct pre-holiday occupancy rate surveys for popular tourist hotels, hotels within national scenic areas, and large hotels near famous attractions. Hotels with high occupancy rates will be asked to implement measures such as managing entry and exit routes and separating dining areas.
As for crowd control at temple visits, the Ministry of the Interior has instructed local authorities to guide managed temples in planning worship routes, controlling visitor numbers, and, during severe pandemic periods, avoiding providing food. Coordination with surrounding vendors will also be actively carried out to manage sales routes, prioritizing public convenience.
The Command Center reminds the public again to maintain at least a 1.5-meter distance indoors and 1-meter distance outdoors, wear masks properly, observe personal hygiene etiquette, and protect both themselves and others.
[Epidemic Statistics]
As of April 9, one additional death was reported among domestic confirmed cases, marking the sixth death case in Taiwan. The total number of confirmed cases now stands at 382 (with Cases 381 and 382 added today), including 328 imported and 54 local cases. Among the confirmed cases, six have died, 91 have been released from quarantine, and the rest remain hospitalized in isolation.
Globally, there have been 1,548,560 confirmed cases across 183 countries/regions. The highest numbers are in the United States (461,437 cases), Spain (152,446), Italy (143,626), Germany (108,202), and France (86,334). The total number of deaths is 94,397, with the most in Italy (18,279), the United States (16,478), Spain (15,238), France (12,210), and the United Kingdom (7,978).