The Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro will celebrate the lifting of sanitary pandemic restrictions with festivities from September 2-5, the city government said in a statement
MEXICO CITY (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 30th July, 2021) The Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro will celebrate the lifting of sanitary pandemic restrictions with festivities from September 2-5, the city government said in a statement.
"If the city continues to experience a downward epidemiological scenario of the COVID-19 pandemic, the carioca [residents of Rio de Janeiro] will be able to return to the streets without restrictions based on a renewal [activity] plan. To mark this comeback, the city will promote 'Rio de Novo,' a Calendar of events that will bring the carioca back to the city. The start of the festivities will be on September 2, when there will be a new phase of rule easing. The year of celebrations will culminate with a municipal holiday on September 2, 2022, during the Reencounter Day," the city government said on Thursday.
The city government plans to vaccinate 77% of the population with at least one dose of vaccine by September and 45% with two. In this case, on September 2, a three-stage resumption of activity in Rio de Janeiro will begin, with celebrations in view.
The authorities have planned a dozen different events for these four days. The closed-off streets of the city will make it possible to hold gastronomic, musical, sporting, and cultural events in open areas and with limited occupancy.
The first phase of the city's reactivation will run from September 2 to October 17 and include the removal of restrictions on outdoor events, but 50% of visitors to football stadiums, nightclubs, and concert halls have to be fully vaccinated. A mask mandate will, however, remain in force.
From October 17, the restrictions on the number of fully vaccinated visitors are planned to be canceled, and from November 15, the use of masks will remain mandatory only in hospitals and public transport.
"We know Rio will come back to life again. This plan can be abandoned, but according to our data, the situation is improving. It's not perfect yet, but it's better. There is little left to overcome this bad phase of our lives," Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes said during a press conference.
On the last day of the Rio de Novo calendar, during the Reencounter Day, the start of one of the world's largest rock festivals, Rock in Rio, is scheduled.
According to Johns Hopkins University, the death toll in Rio de Janeiro has risen to 58,973 people, and the number of detected cases to more than one million people.
