By Alyssa McMurtry
OVIEDO, Spain (AA) – After a week of increasing coronavirus infections in Spain, 5,000 people attended the country's largest concert since March in Madrid Saturday night to see the Spanish crooner Raphael.
The 77-year-old singer is set to hold another sold-out show in the same indoor venue Sunday evening.
“How can you authorize a concert like this and at the same time ask families not to get together for Christmas and for everyone to be careful?” asked journalist Jose Luis Losa on Twitter.
After images of the concert sparked outrage on social media, the venue, WiZink Center, ensured it went above and beyond health guidelines by operating at 30% capacity, testing staff for coronavirus and giving out masks to audience members.
“I understand that when people see a concert like this… and more than six people won’t be able to get together for the holidays, there is discomfort,” said Madrid Premier Isabel Ayuso.
Yet she justified the event, telling the press that Madrid's infection rate “isn’t worrisome” and the concert took place “in safe conditions.”
According to the latest Spanish Health Ministry data, Madrid has the country’s second-highest infection rate. With 277 infections per 100,000 people over the last two weeks, its epidemiological situation is classified as “extreme risk” by Spain’s national standards.
More than 25% of Madrid's available intensive care units are occupied by COVID-19 patients, and the region of 6.5 million people has counted 11,637 deaths.
Earlier this week, Spain's Health Minister Salvador Illa warned that the country could be “at the beginning of a third wave.”
Going into the Christmas season, Spain has some of the most relaxed anti-virus measures in Europe, though they do vary by region.
In Madrid, private gatherings are limited to six people for the holiday season but bars, concert halls, movie theaters, gyms and restaurants remain open. On Dec. 24, 25, 31 and Jan. 1, the local curfew will be pushed back from midnight to 1:30 a.m.