Hong Kong Disneyland to close again just one month after opening amid coronavirus spike
The Disney corporation is set to close its Hong Kong theme park yet again after the province’s government banned all gatherings of more than four people following a spike in coronavirus cases.
The park announced it would be shuttering temporarily from Wednesday morning - a move that comes 28 days after the tourist attraction cautiously reopened with social distancing measures in place.
“As required by the government and health authorities in line with prevention efforts taking place across Hong Kong, Hong Kong Disneyland Park will temporarily close from July 15, 2020”, Disney said in a statement.
Hong Kong’s latest round of coronavirus restrictions - which include limiting the number of people who can gather in public to four and the closure of businesses including gyms, arcades and amusement parks - were introduced on Monday.
Admitting that the measures were more restrictive than those seen during the city’s last two spikes in cases, Chief Executive Carrie Lam told a news conference on Monday: "Unless we have an effective vaccine which can be widely used in the community, we may need to co-exist with the virus for a period of time,".
It comes after coronavirus cases began to trend upwards in the city for the first time since March, with the 52 new infections recorded on Monday including 41 that were locally transmitted according to health officials.
The city has reported more than 1,500 cases and seven deaths since early January.
The measures also accompany broader restrictions on Hong Kong citizens’ ability to gather and protest as part of an ongoing clamp down in free speech in the region that has seen China increasingly exert control on the state.
The weekend prior to the announcement more than 600,000 Hongkongers turned out to vote in an unofficial two-day primary held by the city's pro-democracy camp as it gears up to field candidates for a forthcoming legislative election in opposition to Beijing’s influence in the region. China declared the ballot "illegal".
The Hong Kong park and Shanghai Disneyland first closed in January, with Tokyo Disneyland following a month later, and Disney parks in the US and Europe shutting their doors in March.
Shanghai Disneyland reopened in May, while two of Walt Disney World's theme parks in Florida reopened last Saturday - despite a steadily increasing spike in cases recorded in the US state.
Disneyland Paris also is welcoming back visitors this week for the first time since March. The reopening of Disney's California parks was postponed pending the issuance of state guidelines.
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