Apple has temporarily shuttered 16 stores in New York City, citing an uptick in COVID cases in the area.
While the stores are closed, New Yorkers are being urged to shop online and will still be able to pick up their purchases at the retail locations.
The company will not be providing technical support from the Genius Bar while the stores are closed.
Shops that are closed include the major locations at Fifth Avenue, SoHo, Grand Central, and World Trade Center. They have also shut the doors to shops in the Upper West Side, West 14th Street, Staten Island, and the Bronx.
According to a report from Bloomberg News, the tech giant has also closed down shops in London, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Ohio, Texas, Georgia, and Florida.“We regularly monitor conditions, and we will adjust our health measures to support the well-being of customers and employees,” Apple said in a statement on Monday. “We remain committed to a comprehensive approach for our teams that combines regular testing with daily health checks, employee and customer masking, deep cleaning and paid sick leave.”
COVID cases have hit an all-time high in the Big Apple, with tens of thousands of new cases reported each day. The extreme rise is persisting despite the city implementing vaccine passports and some of the strictest mandates in the nation.
Apple has not announced when the stores would reopen.
Earlier this month, Apple announced that they will not be reopening their offices in February as they originally planned.
"The company attempted to go back into the office in June and September and pushed back reopening dates to January and February, but each date has been canceled due to COVID-19 fears," The Hill reported.
Apple is also requiring all employees and customers wear masks in the stores — even if they are fully vaccinated.
“Amid rising cases in many communities, we now require that all customers join our team members in wearing masks while visiting our stores,” the company said in a statement earlier this month.
