Visitors To Wear Distancing Alarms At Florences Duomo

Visitors to the famous Duomo Cathedral in Florence now have to wear these lanyards with sensors on them which vibrate and flash if they get too close to other tourists inside.

The sensors are being handed out by the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore organisation which manages the world-famous cathedral complex in Florence in central Italy’s Tuscany region to ensure social distancing guidelines are followed at the tourist site.

The sensors will vibrate and light up if visitors move too close to others inside the complex, with the organisation saying they are being used to guarantee “safety and a high-quality visit”.

Credit: Newsflash/ Opera Santa Maria del Fiore

The alarms can be switched off for families visiting the cathedral together.

The devices called EGOpro Social Distancing were created by the Italian company Advance Microwave Engineering (AME) and are given back at the end of the visit before being disinfected and used again.

The sensors are mandatory in the famous dome of the cathedral and in the Museum of the Works of the Cathedral where Michelangelo’s ‘The Deposition’ hangs along with sculptures from Donatello.

Credit: Newsflash/@EGOproSaFETY
Vibrating Social-Distancing Necklaces

In the video, Monsignor Timothy Verdon can be seen explaining the use of the devices.

The sensors can also be used with an additional device to allow the tourist site to see if the capacity is full and monitor visitors’ movements.

The data can then be used to help manage the number of visitors entering the site and define the areas where capacity is most-often reached to help create safety parameters.

Italy’s easing of restrictions allows people to visit cultural sites but travel between regions is not yet allowed and the arrival of foreign tourists has been limited.

Work on Florence’s Gothic cathedral began in 1296 and it was completed by 1436, with the famous dome engineered by Filippo Brunelleschi.

According to the latest figures from the Johns Hopkins University Italy has registered 227,364 cases of COVID-19 and 32,330 related deaths.


To find out more about the author, editor or agency that supplied this story – please click below.
Story By: Ana LacasaSub-EditorJoseph Golder, Agency: Newsflash

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