Laurence Dollimore
EIGHT municipalities in Malaga will be permitted to re-open bars and restaurants from this Saturday after lowering their coronavirus incidence rates.
The towns may also re-open all other non-essential businesses after leaving COVID alert Level 4.2.
The highest level of the four-tier system created by the Junta de Andalucia is reserved for municipalities which record a 14-day cumulative incidence rate of 1,000 cases per 100,000 people or above.
The eight municipalities which can re-open all businesses are: Alfarnatejo, Alhaurin el Grande, Alora, Cañete la Real, Cutar, Moclinejo, Mollina and Igualeja.
They must all continue to keep their outer perimeters closed, however, meaning no one can enter or leave without a justified reason (legal, medical or work related).
The closure of a municipality’s borders is ordered by the Junta when the incidence rate surpasses 500 cases per 100,000 people.
A municipality must also close all non-essential businesses if the rate surpasses 1,000 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
Two new Malaga municipalities – Villanueva de Tapia and Canillas de Albaida – have crossed the 1,000-case threshold this week, meaning they must close bars, restaurants and any other business not deemed essential for at least two weeks from Saturday.
Elsewhere in the province, four municipalities have managed to bring their incidence rate to below 500 cases per 100,000 people.
Archidona, Comares, Humilladero and Viñuela will therefore re-open their outer perimeters from Saturday.
But after clocking incidence rates of 500.9 and 509.8 respectively, Cuevas del Becerro and Arenas will close their outer borders for at least two weeks from Saturday.
A total of 72 municipalities in Malaga are now sealed off, with 33 of these also having to close all non-essential businesses.
