Two nights into a two-week, 8pm-5am curfew in Phnom Penh, police said they had impounded 155 vehicles, while authorities in other provinces have also restricted traffic in their jurisdictions to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
Phnom Penh municipal police spokesman San Sok Seiha told The Post that on April 2-3, the authorities had impounded 155 vehicles, including 134 motorcycles and 21 cars. The owners are now required to self-quarantine at home 14 days before they can get their vehicles back.
“We impounded people’s vehicles if they didn’t have any documents at all. We let people go if they were food service workers or company workers with valid documents. We didn’t make any arrests,” he said.
“Most of them knew about the curfew and still violated its prohibitions. I don’t think they could be uninformed about it because I believe all media outlets have covered it, even commune-level broadcasts,” he said.
Pursuant to the decision of the Phnom Penh Municipal Administration on the implementation of temporary administrative measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19, all traffic is temporarily banned in Phnom Penh from 8pm until 5am for two weeks from April 1 to 14.
In some provinces, authorities have restricted commercial activities and traffic in and out of their territories, including in Koh Kong’s Sre Ambel district, Svay Rieng’s Romeas Hek district and the entirety of Kampong Speu province.
Kampong Speu provincial governor Vei Samnang told The Post that the provincial administration had decided to temporarily restrict the operating hours of some businesses and had instructed them to close from 8pm to 5am, including restaurants, cafes, mobile food stalls and liquor stores. The restrictions would be enforced for the two week period from April 2 to 15.
Samnang confirmed that he did not close off traffic for the entire province, however.
“I did not close down traffic. I closed the bars and restaurants from 8pm to 5am. We asked them to stop selling food and stop serving drinks at their locations – but takeaway and delivery to homes is allowed,” he said.
“We cannot close down all traffic because in Kampong Speu province there are some workers in the Oral Mountains who need to get up at 4am and wait for their rides. They cannot get there on time if they walk,” he said.
Svay Rieng province’s Romeas Hek district governor Sou Mol announced on April 1 that residents who go to work in Phnom Penh or elsewhere – even within the province itself – are required to quarantine for 14 days first if they want to return to their homes.
“Once they arrive in Romeas Hek district they must present themselves at the second level of the quarantine centre in Mukda commune’s Kranhung village for a health follow-up. They have to have their temperatures taken and their documents verified. Then they must undergo another seven day quarantine under the supervision of local authorities,” he said.
Kandal governor Kong Sophorn, whose province has experienced a large number of cases, said local authorities were ready to impose a curfew if the outbreak spread any further.
“The spread in the province is at a level where the local authorities can control the situation. But in some areas we are ready to impose a curfew now if there is any further outbreak, while some other areas would still maintain traffic and trading activities as normal,” he said.
In Koh Kong, the provincial police have set up checkpoints in O’Chrov village of Sre Ambel district’s Boeung Preav commune, restricting all traffic and banning entry by people from high risk areas to the province unless absolutely necessary.
