Mechelen (in the province of Antwerp) will cancel all public and private events to curb the spread of the new coronavirus (Covid-19), mayor Alexander Vandersmissen announced on Sunday.
The city will also comply with the measures announced by Antwerp Governor Cathy Berx, such as reducing the size of social bubbles.
On top of this, sports club competitions in the city will have to take place behind closed doors.
“I am pleased that there is more clarity and applaud the governor’s communication,” said Vandersmissen. “In the current context, it would be absolutely unwise to take different measures than in other parts of the province.”
“I realize that these are harsh measures, but they are necessary if we want to avert another lockdown,” he added.
Like the governor, Vandersmissen asks his inhabitants to write down their ten permanent contacts for the next four weeks. In public areas, no one should meet more than ten people anyway.
Earlier this week, Mechelen already decided to introduce a general face mask obligation on top of the federal obligations for public spaces in the entire inner city of Mechelen and on the car parks of chain stores.
In contrast to the city of Antwerp, the number of infections in Mechelen remains limited.
