Story By: Ana Lacasa, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Newsflash

Police in Alicante are monitoring the time people are walking their dogs to stop the spread of coronavirus after reports of pet owners spending hours in the streets with their pooches.

The Town Hall Security Council in the city of Alicante, located along the coast of popular tourist destination Costa Blanca in the autonomous community of Valencia on the Spanish Mediterranean coast have announced the new measures.

Local media report authorities will start monitoring the time people walk their dogs after several complaints by citizens who claim they see people walking their dogs for entire mornings.

Authorities will reportedly start surveilling people on the streets with their pets and have reminded citizens that they “cannot walk their dog for more than 10 minutes.”

Local police have stopped 250 citizens, inspected 453 vehicles and reported 17 people, according to reports.

Spain has remained in a state of alarm since 14th March due to the rapid spread of the coronavirus, officially named COVID-19 by the World Health Organization.

Alicante is one of Spain’s most popular holiday destinations for sun-seeking travellers from all around Europe.

The Alicante province receives over 3 million tourists per year and has over 101,000 foreign residents living in the area.

Spain has been one of the hardest-hit countries by COVID-19 with 94,417 cases leading to 8,189 deaths, according to the latest figures from the John Hopkins University.

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