JEDDAH – The municipality has shut down 15 cafes inside private hospitals and fined them for violating hygiene and health rules, Al-Hayat reported. Municipality inspectors carried out extensive visits to several major hospitals and fined them for poor hygiene and failure to comply with health requirements. Some of the cafes did not have licenses to provide services inside a hospital while some failed to properly store food. Many of the workers maintained poor hygiene levels as well. Ever since the municipality started its intensive crackdown campaigns on eateries and restaurants that do not comply with its health regulations, it has shut down 130 food businesses, some of them five-star establishments. It also published the names of violators on its website and social media accounts. A source told Al-Hayat the businesses were shut down temporarily until they had provided proof of their compliance with the municipality's requirements. Permanent closure takes place only when a business continues to commit the same violation again and again. Around 10 gas stations and cafes on roads were closed down all over Jeddah Governorate and its outskirts, the source said. There are 14 field teams that inspect restaurants and eateries four times a month. Meanwhile, the municipality has banned horses and bikes on the Jeddah Corniche after receiving a complaints from several citizens. The municipality has sent a letter to Jeddah Police explaining the dangers horses and bikes pose to members of the public and how they can cause accidents to visitors. In the letter, the municipality asked the police to send patrol vehicles to the site to ensure public safety.
