According to The Associated Press, Mexico closed a Yucatan ruin due to an increase in maskless visitors.
Authorities will shut down the Chichén Itzá Maya ruin site from April 1-4 in an effort to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, AP reported.
The news outlet noted that the temple complex usually attracts 1.8 million tourists a year.
Lucio Hernández Gutiérrez, acting police chief of Quintana Roo state, told AP it was “regrettable” to see how bad the area had become.
“It’s a shame to see how undisciplined things have become,” he told AP. “It was really frustrating to see hundreds of people walking around without a face mask.”
He added that the “worst offenders” were tourists.
The AP also reported that the multi-day crucifixion ceremony of Jesus Christ will be held in Mexico City for the second year in a row without spectators, citing the risk of the pandemic.
The news comes a day after Mexico passed 200,000 coronavirus deaths Thursday, according to Reuters
One count from Johns Hopkins University puts the nation’s death toll at 200,211 as of Friday afternoon.
The death toll in Mexico follows Brazil, which recorded 303,462 deaths, and the United States, which recorded 546,822 deaths.
Mexico has registered more than 2.2 million coronavirus infections since the start of the pandemic.