USA – California allows outdoor attractions to open from April
Making another move to ease restrictions as virus infections dip and vaccines spread, California will permit large-group outdoor activities to resume at limited capacity next month, allowing baseball parks to welcome fans for the start of the season and performance venues to resume operations.
Under new guidelines announced by the California Department of Public Health, amusement parks, stadiums and ballparks in the state can reopen at 15% capacity starting on April 1 if certain test positivity rates are met. However, Disneyland won’t resume operations under the most restrictive tier that still allows theme parks to reopen, since it limits capacity at 15%. The new guidelines could also drive activity in other industries, including live music and sports.
The pandemic has already forced Walt Disney Co. to lay off thousands of workers — most of them part-time — from its parks division in the U.S., as COVID-19 forced the monthslong closures of Disneyland and Walt Disney World in Florida. Disney World reopened over the summer.
California has seen a steady decline in coronavirus cases since mid-January. The state has so far recorded more than 53,000 Covid-related deaths. The US has seen almost twice as many deaths – 522,610 – as the next hardest-hit country, Brazil.
