A police officer inspects a passenger on a bus in Istanbul, Turkey, on Sept. 4, 2020. Turkey's biggest city Istanbul on Friday launched a series of inspections to monitor compliance with the COVID-19 rules on hygiene, social distancing and wearing masks. (Photo by Osman Orsal/Xinhua)
ISTANBUL, Sept. 4 (Xinhua) -- Turkey's biggest city Istanbul on Friday launched a series of inspections to monitor compliance with the COVID-19 rules on hygiene, social distancing and wearing masks.
Local authorities, accompanied by police units, boosted controls in intercity bus terminals, airports, restaurants, cafes and all kinds of workplaces across the city.
Harem Bus Station in the Uskudar district was among the main centers of the inspections as it is a significant transportation hub in the region.
Murat Sefa Demiryurek, the district governor, told Xinhua that some new restrictions could be taken if the current measures would not be enough to contain the pandemic.
A day earlier, Istanbul Governor Ali Yerlikaya urged the infected citizens to strictly follow the quarantine rules.
"For God's sake, do not go outside under any circumstance... We will allow no single person to make such a mistake," he said at an event.
Currently, 642 teams of 1,900 personnel are working in the field across Istanbul to identify those who recently contacted the infected patients, according to Yerlikaya.
More than 87,000 households were reached between Aug. 10 and Aug. 30, the governor noted.
Additionally, the Istanbul Municipality has recently launched a new project to raise awareness of the pandemic, patrolling all 39 districts of the city to explain to the residents how to best protect themselves from the coronavirus.
Istanbul, with a population of 16 million, had previously accounted for as high as 70 percent of the total COVID-19 cases in Turkey, but the rate dropped to 25 percent to 30 percent at the beginning of August, according to the governor's office.
Turkey reported 1,642 new cases on Thursday, raising the total number of infections to 274,943, including 6,511 deaths. Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said the country is experiencing the second peak of the pandemic as the figures have been continuously increasing.
