No matter which country you’re from, you’ve probably been asked to practise “social distancing” due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
Yes, now’s the time we all have to come together and fight this disease by staying as far apart from each other as possible.
That’s why the government encouraged people to maintain a distance of at least 1-metre from others in public, especially in restaurants, entertainment venues, and other crowded areas.
And now, you may even have to keep a distance when you’re buying a lottery ticket.
Queue for Buying 4D / Toto to Have Social Distancing As Well Though It Doesn’t Seem to be 1m
Many of you know Hardware Zone as the forum where rational humans come together to discuss important issues.
On 20 March, one user posted a picture of people queuing at what is probably a Singapore Pools outlet.
As you can see, yellow lines have been taped on the floor to separate people waiting in the queue, and there is a sign saying “Please stand behind the yellow line.”
This is great because it means that even a lottery outlet is taking social distancing seriously. There’s one problem, though – it doesn’t appear to be 1-metre apart.
Moreover, according to the poster, there were only a few yellow lines at the front, meaning those at the rear of the queue will be close to each other.
And, if you look closely, you’ll see that no one in the queue is even standing behind the yellow lines.
According to the Singapore Pools website, queues and seats are now marked to ensure enough space around each customer, as part of social distancing measures.
Additionally, the admission capacity for Betting Centres and Livewire venues will be reduced to 50%.
Gaps in Entertainment Outlets and Eateries
You can probably expect to see a lot more tape in the coming months, because many restaurants and hawker centres are going to make sure there are sufficient gaps between patrons from now on.
Dining venues, for instance, are advised to set their seats at least one metre apart from one another.
Though if you place some red tape on a coffee shop seat, people might think it’s broken and not sit on it at all.
The same applies to entertainment venues like cinemas.
Numerous cinema companies like Golden Village and Shaw have enforced a one or two-seat gap between moviegoers.
If you lovebirds out there are panicking, don’t worry; this applies on a per-booking basis, so you can still sit with your lover/friend, but the system will leave a gap between other patrons or groups.
Do it on Your Own
Here’s the thing though. We shouldn’t only practise social distancing when it’s enforced; we should always keep a distance of 1 metre from others in public especially in crowded settings.
Do we really need a line of tape to tell us what to do? Whether’s it’s in a queue, restaurant, or cinema, always maintain a distance not just so you can avoid contracting Covid-19, but so you don’t spread it as well.
As Dr Leong Hoe Nam once hinted at, sometimes, we just have to use our common sense.
Something that some people lack at this moment. Do you know people mass gathered to dress up as Smurfs during this outbreak period? No you don’t want to know but here’s the article about it.