Indoor activities and after-dark businesses will be restricted in the Seoul region from Tuesday amid fears of a third wave of coronavirus outbreaks.

From midnight Tuesday to at least Dec. 7, restrictions in Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province would be raised to level 2, the third-highest on the country’s five-tier restriction scale.

Korea`s daily cases have surged to three digits since Nov. 8. On Sunday, the country added 330 new cases, marking the fifth straight day of cases over 300, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).

Local transmissions accounted for 302 of the 330 new cases, with 219 coming from the greater Seoul area.

Under the level 2 guideline, one-third of all public servants and employees of public organizations and public companies would work from home.

Gatherings of 100 or more people would be banned. Some virus-prone facilities, including nightclubs, would be ordered to shut down.

Restaurants can only serve food until 9 p.m., after which only takeout and delivery services would be available. Coffee shops can only offer takeout and delivery services.

Indoor sports facilities, such as gyms and billiard clubs, would have to halt operations after 9 p.m. Public facilities can only admit 30 percent of full capacity, with sports events capped to just 10 percent of capacity.

School attendance would be restricted to one-third in kindergartens, primary schools and middle schools and two-thirds in high schools.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced a separate restriction measure to contain the further spread during the year-end season.

From Tuesday to the end of the year, Seoul will restrict public transit after 10 p.m., with bus and subway operations to be cut by 20 percent each. The city is also considering shortening the last subway train time to 11 p.m. from midnight if the virus situation does not subside.

Assemblies of more than 10 people would be banned from Tuesday until further notice.

The resurgence will take a blow on restaurants and the travel industry that had anticipated a rise in year-end demand.

Coffee shops are also bracing for the renewed ban on indoor dining. They had suffered a 30 percent loss in sales when restrictions were raised to level 2.5 in August.

Major coffee chains are launching delivery services, starting with Starbucks this Friday.

Industry observers say hotels in the capital are likely to take a bigger hit than those in Jeju Island or the east coast. Hotels in Seoul saw reservation rates plunge to 10 percent in May and June as a result of the pandemic. They have since recovered to 40 percent, but could face another slowdown under the new restrictions.

By Pulse

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