Stricter measures for Turkey’s malls introduced

Authorities in Istanbul have introduced stricter measures, particularly for the use of air conditioners and shopper traffic inside the venues, for the city's malls after people swarmed shopping centers and social distancing rules were largely violated after they reopened on May 11 as part of the "normalization program."

The city hygiene assembly was convened on May 13, chaired by deputy governor Cemalettin Özdemir, to discuss additional steps to be taken in the malls.

Accordingly, people will not be allowed to enter and exit the venues at the same time through the same gate to prevent close interaction between the leaving and arriving visitors.

Air conditioning will not be used but only central ventilation systems will operate to let fresh air flow into the venues.

Ventilation systems will not use the air already circulating inside the malls.

Restaurants in the shopping centers will provide take-away service and people are required to stand at least one meter apart from each other when they get in line to collect their order.

Elevators will be reserved for those with special needs only. The shopping centers and stores inside those venues will serve only a limited and certain number of costumers at a time.

The district governors' offices will inspect whether the shopping centers are abiding by the regulation imposed. A commission of five people, including a public health expert and a mechanical engineer, will visit the malls at least once a week in each of the city's districts.

Those who violate the rules will be fined and if the violation continues legal actions may be taken against them. An individual will face up to a 3,100 Turkish Lira fine (around $450) and the fines for businesses will be higher as they...