Valencia becomes last Spanish region to reopen dining

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) – As case numbers continued to drop across Spain, Valencia became the last Spanish region to reopen bars and restaurants on Monday.

Valencia was one of Spain’s hardest-hit areas during the third wave of infections, which began in late December. It closed its bars and restaurants more than 40 days ago, though for now, it will only allow outdoor dining and cafes.

Now, bars and restaurants are generally open across the entire country, although restrictions vary. Some regional governments only allow outdoor dining, while others, like Catalonia, have narrow opening hours.

As the good weather sets in, pandemic fatigue appears to be becoming more acute.

Over the weekend, Madrid police broke up a record 442 illegal parties. Bar owners in Barcelona denounced an illegal street party that became massive, saying they are forced to shut down at 4:30 p.m. local time but hundreds of young people are still able to gather on the streets.

Regional governments around the country are slowly relaxing measures, although the Health Ministry is still calling for caution. On Monday, shopping malls in Catalonia opened for the first time in over 50 days.

Over the weekend, Spain reported almost 16,000 new coronavirus infections – nearly 5,000 fewer than the weekend before.

But deaths remain relatively high from the third wave, as another 467 lives were lost to the disease this weekend. With over 10,000 COVID-19 deaths, February was the deadliest month for COVID-19 in Spain since last April.

Meanwhile, Spain has administered 3.8 million vaccine doses so far.

Between those infected with COVID-19 and those vaccinated, the Spanish Society for Epidemiology suggests that around 20% of the Spanish population is now protected from the virus.