As authorities are easing Covid-19 safety measures in Singapore, popular shopping malls have also followed suit.
Lucky Plaza and Peninsula Plaza, which had implemented odd-even entry restrictions during weekends since Aug 2020, lifted the curb on Saturday (10 Apr).
Subsequently, pictures of massive crowds forming in and outside of the malls started surfacing on social media over the weekend.
As this raised concerns of public health and safety, armed police were also deployed to patrol the area.
According to The Straits Time (ST), masses of workers, mostly comprising those from Myanmar and the Philippines, returned to their favourite hangout spots over the weekend.
When reporters arrived at the scene at around 11.30am Sunday (11 Apr), they could hear shouts, asking visitors to move along and avoid waiting at a single spot.
ST reported that Lucky Plaza, which only has a maximum occupancy of 6,445, had to stop receiving visitors for a while as more people started pouring in.
Pictures show the walkway outside the mall teeming with people who were probably waiting to enter the premises.
Due to the worrying size of the crowds, safe distancing ambassadors and armed police officers were deployed to the location for crowd control.
The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and Enterprise Singapore (ESG) strongly advised visitors against visiting Lucky Plaza and Peninsula Plaza during peak hours.
They added they will continue to monitor the crowd situation.
Both agencies also warned that restrictions may be imposed again if crowd control remains a problem.
While Covid-19 restrictions have eased up in recent days, we should not be complacent.
Even with vaccination protocols in place, the fight against the pandemic remains.
It’s on the onus of each individual to stick to safe distancing measures for normalcy to return. Until then, every one of us has an important role to play in keeping the community safe.
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at hello@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from Singapore Atrium Sale on Facebook and Facebook.
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