Bistros’ Re-Opening in Miri Needed More Precautions: No Room for Entertainment to Keep People Safe

Last updated on May 18th, 2021 at 05:22 am

As restaurants and bars restart operations they need to determine whether and how to implement considerations, making adjustments to meet local community needs and circumstances. These implementations should be guided by what is achievable, practical, acceptable and tailored to each community’s needs.

The more a person communicates with others, and the longer the exposure, the greater the chance of transmitting COVID-19. The chance of transmitting COVID-19 rises like this in a restaurant or bar setting:

Lowest risk:

Food service is restricted to pick up on the drive-through, pickup, take-out, and curb side.

More risk:

accentuated drive-through, delivery, take-out, and curb-side pick-up. On-site parking is restricted to the seating outside. Reduced seating room allowing for placement of tables at least 6 feet apart.

Even more risk:

dining on-site with seating indoors and outdoors. Reduced seating room allowing for placement of tables at least 6 feet apart.

Highest risk:

dining on site with indoor as well as outdoor seating. Unreduced seating capacity and tables not spaced at least 6 feet apart.

Respiratory droplets produced as people speak, cough, or sneeze often disperse COVID-19. The virus is believed to travel from a infected surface to the palms, and then to the nose or mouth, triggering infection. Health preventive activities (such as handwashing, keeping at home while sick) and environmental sanitation and disinfection are important.

In view of this, Sarawak has provided the green light for the reopening of bistros (restaurant with a bar), but the Miri City Council has prohibited any sort of entertainment in those premises.

Miri Mayor Adam Yii said that one should serve only food and beverages. He added that bistro working hours would only be from 7 am to 10 pm. Customers have to get their temperature registered and they have to sit in compliance with the social distancing laws.

He said that bistros owners are required to clean their premises both before and after working hours. Yii told the public that reopening bistros doesn’t mean everything is back to usual. He explained that even in Miri, which has been designated a green zone, Covid-19 remains a hazard and cause for concern.

During the past two months Miri Hospital has seen two deaths and over two dozen Covid-19 infections. So precautions should be stricly implemented to keep people from being transmitted by the virus.