CALIFORNIA — Governor Gavin Newsom gave updated orders for coronavirus restrictions ahead of Independence Day Weekend on Wednesday, July 1, mandating the closure of indoor operations in 19 counties due to the increase of coronavirus cases. The order is expected to last at least three weeks and goes into effect on Thursday.
The closure applies to restaurants, wineries, tasting rooms, movie theatres, family entertainment centers, zoos, museums and card rooms. These businesses are not required to close entirely but can remain open if operations can adjust to be accommodated outside. Bars also remained shuttered after another order was issued for their closure this past weekend.
The counties affected have been on the state’s monitoring lists for three consecutive days in light of the increased numbers. A couple of the counties listed in the updated order include Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura, Riverside and San Bernandino.
The state of California has seen stark increases in confirmed coronavirus cases as protests have occurred regularly for over the past month and the economy has begun to slowly reopen. The number of patients admitted to hospitals for COVID-19 has increased over the past two weeks by 43% and ICU hospitalizations have seen an increase as well.
On Tuesday, 8,158 new cases of COVID-19 were indicated after recording record high-numbers for the fourth time in just over a week.
Beach parking lots will also be closed for time being to deter traffic within the areas, but beaches can remain open under local jurisdiction. Local officials in Los Angeles and Ventura have already decided to close beaches entirely during the Fourth of July Day Weekend to reduce the spread of coronavirus.
In addition to the added precautions, Newsom urged local officials to cancel firework demonstrations and advised residents to limit the Fourth of July gatherings to only those within the same household.
In total, there have been 233,060 cases of coronavirus in the state of California with 6,086 deaths.
