Gyeongju City Raises Social Distancing to Level 2... Quarantine Inspections for Entertainment Venues, Restaurants, and Cafes

Fines Imposed: 1.5 Million Won for First Violation, 3 Million Won for Second Violation

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Jae-ho] On the 11th, Gyeongju City in Gyeongbuk announced that it will conduct intensive inspections on restaurants, cafes, and other establishments including entertainment facilities following the elevation of social distancing to Level 2.

Accordingly, the city plans to focus on checking compliance with quarantine rules at about 230 entertainment facilities and more than 8,800 places including restaurants, coffee shops, beauty salons, and bathhouses.

The main inspection items include ▲ suspension of operations from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. the next day ▲ preparation of visitor logs ▲ mandatory mask-wearing for workers and users ▲ limiting the number of users to one person per 4㎡ of the permitted or reported facility area ▲ availability and management of disinfectants in business establishments, among others.

In case of violation of quarantine rules, a one-strike-out policy will be enforced with immediate suspension of gatherings. Administrative measures such as fines of 1.5 million KRW for the first violation and 3 million KRW for the second violation will be imposed, and in case of confirmed cases, claims for hospitalization, treatment, and quarantine costs will also be pursued.

A Gyeongju City official said, "Although many businesses are suffering economic difficulties due to COVID-19, we ask for the broad understanding and active cooperation of citizens to prevent greater damage."

Earlier, Gyeongbuk Province raised the social distancing level to 'Gyeongbuk-style Social Distancing Level 2' for three weeks from 0:00 on the 8th to 24:00 on the 28th, following the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters' recommendation for social distancing Level 2.

Regarding this, Mayor Ju Nak-young announced on the 6th that "If strengthened distancing is well implemented, the spread speed can gradually slow down," maintaining Level 1.5 distancing. However, Gyeongju City has been criticized for causing anxiety among citizens due to repeated confusion, such as sending SNS messages to inform citizens of the elevation to Level 2 starting from the 8th.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.