South Tyrol is tightening the rules again in the corona pandemic. In the open air, a mask is compulsory “from now on” if a minimum distance of one meter can no longer be maintained. Passengers in local public transport must wear an FFP2 mask. The governor of the autonomous province in northern Italy, Arno Kompatscher, signed a corresponding ordinance on Monday evening. In 20 so-called red communities with high incidence values and low vaccination rates occurs moreover on Wednesday a curfew from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. in effect.
In the “red communities” one was only allowed to go outside in urgent cases or because of work, it said. Bars and restaurants have to close at 6 p.m. In hotels, however, guests can still be served afterwards. Dancing in discos and public cultural, leisure or sporting events in closed rooms is prohibited. The restrictions do not apply to kindergartens and schools.
Kompatscher had already asked the government in Rome to let the regions arbitrarily decide on stricter corona measures in certain cases. The incidence values are high in South Tyrol. Many are not vaccinated. In total, the authorities in Italy reported a little more than 6,400 new infections and 70 deaths with the virus within one day on Monday. Around 87 percent of the population over the age of twelve has received at least one dose of vaccine so far.