[ad_1]
ofTT
published:
February 1 The | Photo: Bertil Ericson / TT
The Falkenberg municipality has received several tips on congestion at the Gekås department store in Ullared. Stock Photography.
While taverns are at risk of closing, there are no penalties for stores and department stores that violate the advice of the Public Health Authority. But public advice is still coming.
– Most are businesses and Gekås stands out, says Per Ola Svensson, from Falkenberg municipality.
The Prime Minister addressed a call for Swedes to move to an open-air restaurant where congestion occurs:
“I think you can contact your municipality,” said Stefan Löfven (S) at a press conference in April.
Since then, several taverns have been closed. The public health authority has given infection control doctors in the region the power to close taverns that do not follow advice.
Many councils have reached the municipalities that carry out the inspections, but the councils refer not only to taverns but also to shops.
Many people in Gekås
In Falkenberg municipality, there are several tips on the popular Gekås department store in Ullared. City inspectors have been in place, but only to inspect portions in relation to department stores.
“At Gekås, we experienced a lot of people in the store, but we focused on service operations,” says Per Ola Svensson, deputy director of environmental management at Falkenberg.
Stores can also afford to go on, but unlike taverns, they cannot be closed if standards are not followed. Therefore, stores are not inspected.
– We pass the tips on to the infection control doctor and the Public Health Agency so they can find out what the image is, says Per Ola Svensson.
After taking various measures, Gekås has no congestion problems, according to Boris Lennerhov, CEO of the department store. However, it is frustrated when visitors comment on overcrowding when they have chosen to visit department stores.
– We have made a tremendous amount and have invested a lot of money to limit the risks. No one should have a chance to accuse us of not doing our best to reduce infection. But it is not we who are infected, we are people, says Boris Lennerhov.
“We can not do anything”
Even in Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö, environmental authorities inform TT of complaints about congestion in stores, among other things.
– That’s the problem, after all. We cannot answer that question because we have no tools to work with. It doesn’t help if we go out and look. There is nothing we can do, says Anna Ledin, director of environmental management in Gothenburg.
Of the hundreds of complaints the city of Gothenburg has received, around 60 percent are attending. The remaining 40 percent refers to activities such as clothing stores and grocery markets.
– The municipality then responds that unfortunately there is no addressee of this complaint. The responsibility lies with the operator and the public, says Anna Ledin.
Problem areas are investigated.
The Public Health Authority knows about congestion in stores:
– Yes, we also receive a lot of signals about such a direct hit to the Public Health Authority, says Anders Wallensten, Deputy State Epidemiologist in authority.
The spread of the infection has become widespread in restaurants and that is why taverns are also at risk of sanctions, according to the Public Health Authority.
– They saw that restaurants were a problem area and wanted to see how to make them safer from an infection control point of view. If stores become a problem in a different way, you may have to, too, says Anders Wallensten.
TT: Will the Public Health Authority in the future grant the authority to prevent the spread of doctors who also close, for example, stores?
– I dare not say that at the moment, but if we find problem areas, we will explore the possibilities to find ways to take some form of action. But most of it is about helping us keep our distance.
published:
