ORLANDO (CBSMiami/AP) – The Walt Disney World Resort is set to loosen restrictions on its mask policy.

Beginning Thursday, April 8th, guests will be able to temporarily remove their masks to take outdoor photos in the parks. Disney said they must remain in one place and social distance.

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The change tweaks a requirement that all workers and visitors age 2 and up wear masks except when they are actively eating or drinking, provided they are socially distanced and not moving about. The mask mandate includes those who already have been vaccinated.

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Workers and visitors have been required to wear masks, get temperature checks upon arriving and follow social distancing markers while in line ever since the Florida theme park resort reopened last summer after closing for more than two months because of the pandemic.

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Although the first downpours of April have heralded the rainy season in southern Vietnam, it is forecast that scorching heat accompanied by dangerously high UV levels will linger for at least the next week.

In the first ten days of April, rainfall of 15-30 millimeters was recorded in most parts of southern Vietnam, according to the National Center for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting (NCHMF).

Ba Tri District in the Mekong Delta province of Ben Tre reported the region’s highest precipitation of 101mm during the time frame.

Over the next few days, southern Vietnam will continue to experience occasional rain, most likely on the 12th, 16th and 17th of April, NCHMF forecast.

Thunderstorms and gusts might accompany downpours, with rainfall typically falling into the range of 15-30mm, with the exception of some areas where rainwater will exceed 50mm.

It will likely rain in the late afternoon and evening while residents are told to brace for continued heat during daytime.

A ‘very high’ UV reading will remain in southern Vietnam until Tuesday and necessary precautions while going outdoors are advised.

Over the next ten days, saltwater intrusion on the Vam Co and Mekong Rivers are expected to intensify before abating after Thursday.

However, high salininty levels will keep troubling the Cai Lon River in Kien Giang Province until at least April 20, the NCHMF forecasts.

Farmers in the Mekong Delta region are therefore recommended to take extra caution in irrigation, especially when it concerns crops of high economic value.

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MISSION VIEJO, Calif. – Katie Ledecky won the 400-meter freestyle Saturday at the TYR Pro Swim Series with the world’s fastest time this year.

She touched in 3 minutes, 59.25 seconds in the outdoor pool. The defending Olympic champion is the only swimmer to go under 4 minutes this year.

Leah Smith finished second in 4:06.37.

Ledecky added the 400 free title to the 200 free she won a day earlier, also with the fastest time in the world this year.

Brazil’s Bruno Fratus edged Caeleb Dressel to win the 50 free. Fratus touched in 21.80 seconds, with Dressel finishing in 21.83.

Two-time Olympic beach volleyball medallist April Ross has a rare opportunity to relax with 100 days to go before the Tokyo Games.

That doesn’t mean she will.

Ross and partner Alix Klineman are the No. 1 team in the Olympic qualification rankings and the only Americans who have already clinched one of four likely spots for U.S. beach teams in the pandemic-delayed 2020 Games. While other twosomes are still fighting for spots in Tokyo — including Ross’ partner in Rio, three-time gold medallist Kerri Walsh — Ross and Klineman can work on other things without worrying about their spot in the standings.

But work they will.

“We have to hold onto it for a couple of months. We feel like we have a lot of work to do,“ Ross said in a conference call on Thursday. “It’s just a blessing to be qualified already.”

Ross, 38, won a silver medal at the 2012 Games in London, losing in the championship to Walsh and fellow triple-champion Misty May Treanor. Four years later, Ross teamed up with Walsh to earn bronze in Rio.

Now Ross is headed back to the Summer Games with her third partner in as many tries. Klineman, 31, only moved from the indoor game to the sand in 2017, winning rookie of the year honours on the AVP domestic beach tour before teaming up with Ross the next year to make a run at Tokyo.

Having only played the outdoor sport for a few seasons, Klineman thinks the pandemic delay could pay off with an extra year of experience and bonding with Ross. Kleinman has also fought shoulder problems, and used the time to get healthy.

“Alix is pretty new to the beach, relatively speaking,“ Ross said. “She was given more time to work on her game.”

Most beach volleyball teams qualify for the Olympics by earning points on the world tour that was shut down for the past year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. A quota limits each country to a maximum of two men’s teams and two women’s.

Heading into a three-tournament mini-bubble in Cancun, Mexico, Ross and Klineman are too far ahead of either the other U.S. teams to be knocked out. Walsh and her new partner, Brooke Sweat, are fifth in the world rankings overall but 3,000 points behind the leaders; Sarah Sponcil and Kelly Claes, and Kelley Kolinske and Emily Stockman are also mathematically in the hunt.

Taylor Crabb and three-time Olympian Jake Gibb are the top U.S. men’s team, followed by Nick Lucena and 2008 gold medallist Phil Dalhausser, with Trevor Crabb and Tri Bourne still hoping to move up.

Ross and Klineman were second in the rankings before the COVID-19 shutdown, then they won the first event back last month in Doha, Qatar, to move to No. 1 overall. Although their Tokyo berth is secure, the top ranking would earn them a No. 1 seed in the Olympic tournament, which could mean an easier path to the medal round.

“I know we are in a great place going into Tokyo, but I still feel like there’s a lot to learn,” Klineman said.

Still that’s less important to them than remaining healthy and peaking at the right time.

“We have the ability to rest when we want to rest, and make sure that we are physically strong and ready,” Ross said. “Health is a priority, for sure. And there are some other things we want to integrate into our game that we’ve been working on that we haven’t been able to push because we’ve been going for that spot.“

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SINGAPORE – Home-grown department store Robinsons has become the latest high-profile casualty in a growing list of retailers that the Covid-19 pandemic has claimed.

Business cessations in the retail trade sector hit a 10-month high in September, with 457 companies calling it quits, according to figures from the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority.

Topshop, Esprit and Sportslink are among those that have bowed out or moved their operations online as safety restrictions and tighter purse strings dent store sales.

Another wave of closures is expected after relief to protect qualifying commercial tenants unable to pay rent from eviction and hiked up interest rates ends on Nov 19, said retailers and observers.

Winter wear retailer Universal Traveller, for example, is facing the possibility of folding if it is unable to work out a rental payment plan with landlords for its five outlets.

With travel off the cards for most Singaporeans this year and few tourists in sight, its sales are down by up to 90 per cent.

Reserves are running dry for the three-decade-old business, and pivoting is not easy with cash tied up in inventory, chief executive Trey Poh told The Straits Times.

Mr Terence Yow, a representative of the Singapore Tenants United for Fairness (SGTUFF), said the vast majority of commercial tenants have not received much concession from landlords beyond what has been mandated by the Government.

SGTUFF reportedly represents more than 740 brands as of May.

“Many of us are fearing strict or harsh landlord action the moment the Government lifts the moratorium,” he said.

Mr Yow said retailers are also hoping that safe distancing requirements at malls can be eased to help capture more foot traffic during the year-end and Chinese New Year shopping seasons.

“It’s been a really tough year for all of us and easing these requirements will go a long way to help more frontline businesses survive this crisis,” he said.

Ms Christine Li, head of research for Singapore and South-east Asia at Cushman and Wakefield, said that with more casualties expected in the coming months, landlords who need to boost vacancy rates may have to lower their rental expectations and focus on retaining tenants.

Orchard Road has been hit harder than neighbourhood shopping areas, Ms Li noted, with overall prime retail rent in the shopping belt expected to decline by 10 per cent this year, compared to 5 per cent in suburban areas.

Mr Paul Khor, founder of lifestyle brand Actually and outdoor retailer Outside, said his outlets in Paragon and Marina Square have been hard hit by the loss of tourists.

While online sales have tripled to about $60,000 a month with the launch of new e-commerce stores, it has not been enough to cover the more than $1 million sales loss in the wholesale export side of the business, he said.

Local fashion label Sabrinagoh has also been turning to online sales to make up for the drop in footfall to its Orchard Road and Raffles City stores, hiring for positions such as a digital content creator.

It recently introduced an order-on-demand model, allowing customers to purchase sold-out styles.

“(This) enables us to estimate production quantities and save costs by not building unnecessary inventory and creating waste,” said the brand’s founder, Ms Sabrina Goh.

Some mall operators are investing in e-commerce platforms to help tenants drive online sales.

Mr Tan Kee Yong, chief operating officer for Frasers Property Retail, said it will be launching an e-commerce marketplace for tenants by the end of the year.

Footfall at its malls, which are primarily in the the suburbs, is about 60 to 70 per cent that of the same period last year, he said.

Mr Chris Chong, CapitaLand Singapore’s managing director for retail, said more than 500 merchants have signed up to its retail and food e-commerce platforms launched in June, which are optional for all tenants and open to non-tenants.

“Beyond offering immediate cost and cashflow relief during the circuit breaker, the most valuable support CapitaLand can provide our retail tenants is working with them to transform their business models and adapt to the new normal,” said Mr Chong.