Interim mayor Jorge Antonio Quintero Alvarado reported that from this weekend the establishments that do not comply with the health protocols will be closed.
After intense work on prevention against Covid-19 in this city, the members of the Municipal Health Board agreed to tighten surveillance measures for commercial establishments within the municipality and to fully comply with biosafety protocols. Therefore as of this weekend the Directorate of Inspection and Regulations will be proceeding to close directly those who are not complying with the gauges and the rest of the hygiene measures.
It was during the third meeting of this table, where the interim mayor recalled that after three weeks of work with the different commercial establishments, the indication was given so that as of this Friday the closure will proceed of those establishments that are not complying with the capacity, since there were three weekends in which they were invited and oriented on this issue. So if they do not comply with the protocols, they will be closing.
The mayor of Vallarta pointed out that this determination is based on the situation that currently exists in the municipality where, since last weekend, there has been a significant number of infections.
“I think the situation is too alarming at the moment and I say it as it is, at the end of the day we are seeing that there are many infections and hospitalization… (if we) continue at this rate, I assure you that we will not reach August 15 when we will be completely collapsed in the city and in the medical services.”
He continued explaining that to prevent this from happening, a little more effort should be made in the different sectors of the city, as well as the citizens themselves who have the responsibility of taking care of their health and that of others. This is not a matter just for the authorities, but for all the people of Vallarta who also seek that the economic openness that we are experiencing today does not stop.
He thanked in turn the addition of the universities to this work table, as they will be an important engine for young people aged 18 and over to come this Friday to get vaccinated in the La Lija sports unit, and stressed that sanitary measures such as the use of a face mask, hand washing, and healthy distance must be continued to avoid contagion.
In this framework, the interim municipal president presented the actions that during this last week the different dependencies of the city council have been carrying out, such as the delivery of face masks, the installation of sanitary filters, the sanitization of spaces and the promotion of care for the health in public spaces and neighborhoods of the municipality, which will continue indefinitely so that citizens do not neglect to continue taking care of themselves. He also recalled that in order to reduce infections, mass events and the 18 sports leagues have been canceled.
On the part of the VIII Sanitary Region, the coordinator of Health Services, Juan Ramón Carrillo García, who presented the report of cases detected through the Radar Jalisco program in Puerto Vallarta, highlighted the increase that has been registered. As of July 14 there were 9,015 positive cases, while as of July 20, these increased to 10,328 cases. Regarding hospitalization, to date there is a general occupancy of 70%.
The state official referred to the vaccination day that begins today, where young people from 18 to 29 years old will be able to receive the first dose, as well as all those older who, for various reasons, have not received the first vaccine. They will be receiving the biological Sinovac, which is safe and effective against the disease, in addition to having the approval of the World Health Organization. He also specified that in the case of people who have contracted the disease recently, 15 days must pass after their recovery before they can receive the immunization.
During the meeting, other measures that will be implemented to promote the protocols among national and international tourists who visit this destination were also exposed.