All catering establishments in Sluis, a Zeeland town near the border with Belgium, will remain closed from Sunday. This decision was made because of concerns about the influx of Belgian tourists, a spokesperson for Koninklijke Horeca Nederland (KHN) of the Zeeland region said in conversation with NU.nl.
The decision to close the catering establishments in Sluis was the result of a meeting between KHN Zeeland and the mayor of Sluis.
Since all Belgian catering establishments were closed due to the corona virus, Belgians have flocked to the Zeeland towns of Sluis, Middelburg and Terneuzen, among others.
Belgian minister Pieter de Crem (Interior, Security and Foreign Trade) already expressed his concerns on Twitter on Saturday. “Any Belgian who thinks it’s a good idea to go to the Netherlands is wrong. Stay at home, don’t do this,” said De Crem.
A spokesperson for KHN Zeeland shares the concerns of the Belgian minister. “It is incomprehensible that they are indeed all crossing the border.” According to him, Sluis attracts millions of Belgian tourists every year.
Jan Lonink, Mayor of Terneuzen and chairman of the Zeeland Safety Region, is also concerned about the increasing number of Belgian tourists in the Zeeland towns. “Border areas are not sufficiently taken into account in the Netherlands, while a completely different policy is pursued in Belgium,” Lonink said in conversation with PZC.
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The coronavirus in short
- The virus mainly spreads through cough and sneeze droplets that hang briefly in the air.
- An infected person infects two to three others on average. This number may decrease with proper precautions.
- The vast majority of patients have mild (flu-like) complaints.
- Almost all deaths involve older or already sick people. You can protect these people with precautions.
- Read here what the most important precautions are.
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