Cardiff city centre streets were empty this afternoon on what is usually a busy Saturday of shoppers and visitors to the city.
In the wake of the coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak, businesses across the UK have taken the decision to the close the doors to customers. Some of the shops including Disney and Apple closed their doors last week, but following yesterday’s announcement by UK government, many other shops have now closed.
89 new cases have tested positive for Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Wales, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 280, although the true number of cases is likely to be higher.
Photos of Cardiff looking deserted
Many of Capitol Shopping Centre’s shops were open with only a handful of shoppers around.
There were similar scenes at St David’s Shopping centre, with many of the shops closed for business on Saturday.
A usually busy St David’s Shopping Centre was eerily quiet today as many of the restaurants remained closed.
Some restaurants were opening, such as Shake Shack, who were offering a takeaway service only.
Boris Johnson has asked cafes, pubs and restaurants to close from Friday night – except for take-away food in order to help fight against coronavirus.
The Brewery Quarter is usually full of drinkers and partygoers soaking up the hustle and bustle of the city on a Saturday afternoon.
Nightclubs, theatres, cinemas, gyms and leisure centres have also been told to close “as soon as they reasonably can”.
There were lines of Cardiff Bus buses across the city centre, as many circulated with no more than 5 or 6 passengers.
It was a similar scene outside Cardiff Central Railway Station. There were queues of taxis across the city centre waiting for people.
A usually busy Museum Avenue has plenty of car park spaces available, a scene usually only reserved for road closures or events.
New Theatre Cardiff temporally shut until further notice as the city lockdowns to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
Greyfriars Road in Cardiff is usually bustling with buses and taxis.
