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This Saturday at 6:00 am, after 48 days of confinement, Spanish adults will be able to go for a walk or play sports. The new relief measures presented by the Health Minister, Salvador Illa, will enter into force on Thursday. It is a new step forward, "after a positive evolution of the epidemic" in recent days, which authorizes citizens to leave separated by time bands and ages.

You can go out to do sports alone, keeping the safety distance, without spatial boundaries within the municipality itself or to walk with "a cohabitant" one kilometer from home, with the following time restrictions:

Walks and sports for over 14 years: from 6.00 to 10.00 and from 20.00 to 23.00.

Departures of dependent people (accompanied by a caregiver) and over 70 years: from 10.00 to 12.00 and from 19.00 to 20.00.

Departures with children (with the conditions that already existed): From 12.00 to 19.00.

6.00 a.m.

10.00

12.00

19.00

20.00

23.00

Physical exercise

and walks

Greater

70 years

and dependents

Under 14 years old

accompanied

Greater

70 years

and dependents

Exercise

physical and

walks

The Minister of Health, Salvador Illa. On video, his announcement about slots. (PHOTO: MONCLOA | VIDEO: ATLAS)

Only one departure per day can be made. Asked about the time limit, the minister assured that a guide will be published clarifying all the doubts that arise. Although with children the maximum is still one hour, for adults Illa did not establish this limitation and in her reply repeated the times for each group.

The slots, explained the minister, will serve to avoid crowds. For this reason, they will not be applied in municipalities with less than 5,000 inhabitants, where this risk does not exist.

In addition, Illa presented a second measure of relief: also starting this Saturday, non-professional activities for the care and collection of agricultural products can be carried out in the same municipality or on the border. It will have to be done individually, unless a dependent person or a child is accompanied.

Illa had planned to report in the morning on the order establishing the conditions for departures, but at that time, she said, the document was still being finalized, so her appearance was delayed in the afternoon. In the meeting held by the minister with the health advisers of the autonomous communities on Monday, several of them proposed that the entire population should not be allowed to leave at the same time to avoid crowds. Some images of the weekend were worrying, when for the first time the children began to go outside. Although the Government has assured that they were the exception, on some occasions there were clear breaches of the conditions established by the ministry: walking accompanied by a single adult, one kilometer from home, for one hour and maintaining the safety distance of two meters with others.

Illa listened to the regional proposals and assured that she would take them into account in the order that will regulate the departure of adults. And it has been reflected in this new measure, which will serve as relief as long as the provinces do not change phases . We are at zero and those that meet certain epidemiological requirements, which are not yet clear, will go to 1 on May 11.

“The underlying idea is to keep people from getting closer and to spread out the activities. It is also interesting because the hours of individual sport minimize the risk that, for example, a cyclist will collide with a pedestrian, "explains Joan Ramon Villalbi, an epidemiologist and member of the Spanish Society of Public Health and Health Administration.

A toll to pay

The new norm does not change in any way what was already established with children, so two parents will not be able to go out with their children for a walk. Regarding this limitation, Villalbi reminds that the risks must be minimized. “It is a toll that will have to be paid until the 11th. What the authorities are doing is continuing with a certain brake on to go out. It is a small risk but there are autonomous communities where we have cases, people who go to the ICU and to the emergency room. "This suggests that there may be people who are unknowingly infecting them, and although they are surely not many and the probability of transmission is much less than two months ago, the risk exists."

Magda Campins, head of Preventive Medicine at the Vall d'Hebron hospital in Barcelona, ​​has a different opinion. When the departure by time slots was considered, he explained to EL PAÍS : “We should not worry that families go out together for a walk because they are already together at home as well. The important thing is that they keep their distance from other families. So going out in stripes is important, to avoid crowds ”.

The measure produces paradoxes such as that in a home with two parents and a child, adults will not be able to go out together at any time: neither accompanying their child, nor alone, since some will have to stay at home taking care of the little one.

Take to the streets to do sports and stroll from May 2: everything you need to know

Salvador Illa, Minister of Health, announced yesterday what will be the conditions under which Spaniards enjoy relief measures

MADRID  Updated:05/01/2020 09: 43hSAVE

Salvador Illa, Minister of Health, announced yesterday what will be the conditions under which Spaniards can go outside to walk or play sports. This is one more block of measures to alleviate the coronavirus crisis . The order, which will be published today in the Official State Gazette, establishes that walks and physical exercise may be carried out from 6:00 to 10:00 and from 20:00 to 23:00.

Dependent persons who need to be accompanied by a caregiver and those over 70 years of age may do so from 10:00 to 12:00 in the morning and from 19:00 to 20:00 in the afternoon. The walks with children under 14, who until now were not subject to a certain time, be restricted to the time period ranging from 12.00 to 19.00. The requirements and conditions for leaving are the same as those established in the order from last weekend. These are some of the clarifications of the Health plan to avoid contagion:

How long can I walk?

For rides over 14 years of age, the order published in the Official State Gazette does not include a time limit beyond the limit of the time slot, since it states that "they can only be carried out between 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. and between 20:00 and 23:00 ». These walks do have a distance limit, since they cannot exceed one kilometer from the home.

What hours do I have to walk or play sports?

People between the ages of 14 and 69 will be able to take to the streets starting tomorrow at the following times: from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. or from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. at night. Once a day. Except for people with symptoms or who remain in quarantine.

Can you play sports, go for a walk with a 70-year-old relative and then with the children?

If schedules and obligations are met. If you live with a person of 70 years or more, all activities on the same day would be compatible. The measures to remove the dogs also remain in force.

What sport can I do?

Running, cycling, surfing ... Individual physical activity, without contact, with a distance of at least two meters since exhalations are greater. Once a day and up to the limit of the municipality. The duration is not delimited within the band.

Can I stop and resume the activity afterwards?

Physical activity must be continued. The stops of the activity, such as drinking water, can be made, but avoiding crowded places and for the minimum time necessary.

Do I have to wear a mask to do sports?

The Minister of Health remarked that it is recommended especially when other safety measures cannot be complied with, but its use is not mandatory.

What are the hours in small municipalities?

In municipalities with less than 5,000 inhabitants (N.B. that does not include San Miguel which has an official population of about 6,000), they will not have to follow the strict time bands and the population may go from 6 to 23.

How many times can I go out for a walk and do sports?

You can go out only once a day to carry out these activities, you must always keep the safety distance and it is advisable to wash your hands at the entrance and exit of the home.

Can I go out to play sports with the children?

No. The strips for sports and those for children's outings are separate. Children under 14 years of age may leave from 12 to 19 hours.

If I'm 70 and my partner is 68, what time do we go out?

People over 70 and dependents with a caregiver have their specific hours: from 10 to 12 in the morning or from 19 to 20 in the afternoon. Once a day, no more than a kilometer from home. However, the order states that, during this time slot, all persons over the age of 70 may leave accompanied by a person between 14 and 70 years of age with whom they live.

What if I am at work when the children are allowed out?

The order establishes that minors under 14 years old can go for a walk for one hour a day between 12 and 19 hours. However, it includes as an exception that time slots can be breached in "those cases in which, for duly accredited medical reasons, the practice of physical activity is recommended outside the established ranges, as well as for justified reasons of conciliation of the companions of the elderly, minors or people with disabilities ».

How many people can walk?

The order details that you can only leave accompanied by a person with whom you live. However, says the BOE, "those people who out of necessity have to go out accompanied may also do so by a person in charge of the household or a regular caregiver."

Can I go to the parks?

This measure depends on each municipality. In Madrid, for example, the mayor has indicated that he will not open the parks. In addition, Illa has indicated that "the municipalities, if they consider it appropriate, can enable spaces to carry out activities and thus avoid accumulations." As stated in the order, you can circulate on "any road or space for public use, including authorized natural areas and green areas, provided that the limits established in this order are respected", although it does not affect access to facilities closed sports.

Can I go by subway or bus to the park to run?

The answer is no. The order includes the prohibition of using both motorized vehicles and public transport to travel to places where physical activity is permitted.

Will I be able to take care of the garden?

If it is the same address or the adjacent municipal area, yes. In the minimum and individual routes, except with dependents or children.

How far can I go with the bike?

Riding a bicycle is considered a sport, so you can circulate throughout the municipality in which you reside.

How far can I go walking?

If the reason for leaving the home is to walk and not exercise, you cannot go more than 1 kilometer around beyond your home.

Can I go see family and friends?

You will not be able to visit friends or family in their homes, even though movements are allowed in the same province, at least initially.

Can I go to my second residence?

For all those who have a second residence in a different province than the usual one, they will not be allowed to go to it until the end of the de-escalation plan. Only those who own a second property within the province in which they usually reside may do so from phase 2.

Can I go have a beer?

Not right now. The terraces may open, with a capacity limit of 30%, from phase 1, that is, from May 11, provided that the province meets the criteria. From phase 2 onwards, it will be possible to consume in a local area with table service. In the 3, consumption in bars would already be included and the opening of discos and night bars with a capacity of 30% would be allowed.

Can I go to the beach

Not at the beginning. This possibility is foreseen from phase 3, which would be reached from the beginning of June provided that the sanitary criteria are met. However, Valencia has already encouraged sports on the beaches , disregarding the Government's plan regarding the sandy areas of our country.

Can I do tourism within my province? 

Not at the beginning. From phase 1 (the one that theoretically starts from May 11) active and nature tourism will be allowed for limited groups of people. The celebration of reduced cultural shows and visits to museums will also begin in this phase.