JEDDAH: Falling temperatures across Saudi Arabia could increase the risk of coronavirus spreading, the Saudi health ministry has warned.

Saudi Ministry of Health spokesman Dr. Mohammed Al-Abd Al-Aly called for the public to take extra precautions and “remain vigilant.”

He said public spaces and entities must have sufficient ventilation in closed spaces, patrons and visitors must reduce time spent indoors, social distancing measures must be followed and masks must be worn to ensure safety.

“We reaffirm these precautions, which have been scientifically proven to be successful,” he said, adding that the Saudi public are successfully fighting off a second virus wave by following safety measures.

Al-Aly said that with continued commitment the chances of a second wave are slim, but warned that authorities remain vigilant and penalties are being served.

Saudi Ministry of Commerce and Investment spokesman Abdul Rahman Al-Hussein said that a number of commercial enterprises such as cafes, restaurants and malls have been penalized for failing to follow social distancing measures, occupancy capacities, employee protocols and mask rules.

The penalty for establishments that fail to follow health precautions can total SR100,000 ($26,000). A second offense can result in forced closure.

Al-Hussein said that about 2,400 field inspection tours were conducted last week, with more than 120 violations recorded.

The health ministry reported that the number of virus cases fell in the Kingdom after it recorded 363 new cases on Sunday. The new figure raised total case numbers to 350,592 since the beginning of the pandemic in March.

There were 420 new recoveries recorded in the Kingdom, bringing total recovery numbers to 337,386. The Kingdom’s recovery rate stands at 96.2 percent.

There are 7,666 active cases, 757 of which are in critical care.

A total of 5,540 people have died from coronavirus-related illnesses after 15 more deaths were recorded.

To date, Takkad centers have received more than 4.5 million visitors so far. Tatamman centers have also received more than 1.48 million patients as well.

In the past day, 45,471 new polymerase chain reaction tests were completed, bringing the total number of tests conducted during the pandemic to nearly 8.5 million.