8 Parks in Surabaya Closed to Avoid Omicron Spread

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Surabaya city government in East Java has closed eight parks as part of precautionary measures against the spread of Omicron variant.

The closure of the eight parks began to take effect this week, Chief of the Surabaya City Environmental Office Hebi Agus Djuniantoro said in Surabaya on Sunday.

The parks will remain open from Monday to Friday as usual only for educational purposes, he said.

"(The parks) are closed on Saturdays and Sundays They remain open for educational purposes because during the face-to-face learning some elementary school and junior high school students still need learning in the field. (The parks) are closed for recreation," he said.

The eight parks are Taman Flora, Taman Sejarah, Taman Cahaya, Taman Harmoni, Taman Pelangi, Taman Kebun Bibit, Taman Prestasi and Taman Ekspresi.

In addition, the environmental office will also suspend car-free day (CFD) policy for a while. The CFD policy is suspended for Kertajaya Street and Kembang Jepun Street.

He refused to divulge when the streets will be open to the public to do exercise during the CFD.

""Actually, the CFD is aimed at reducing air pollution. But when the CFD policy is imposed many people gather so we suspend it indefinitely and the Omicron variant eases," he said.

The closure of the eight parks and the suspension of CFD policy will have no significant impact on economic recovery in the city, he said.

Ïf the Omicron variant does not develop significantly, we will open them again. The most important thing is that it should not disrupt economic growth," he said.

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