New restrictions go into effect in New York; New Jersey’s largest city begins 10-day curfew

What you should know

• Indoor restaurants and gyms in New York City could close in the next week or two, the mayor warned, as the latest yellow and orange zone restrictions go into effect in parts of the city and neighboring suburbs on Wednesday.
• The number of COVID-19 patients in New York hospitals has risen to about 2,900. Over the past three weeks, hospitalizations increased 128 percent
• New Jersey has faced steeper increases than New York; its largest city, Newark, begins a 10-day stay-at-home warning Wednesday

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NEW YORK – Indoor restaurants and gyms in New York City could close in the next week or two, the mayor warned, as the latest yellow and orange zone restrictions go into effect in parts of the city and neighboring suburbs. from this Wednesday.

According to state accounting, New York City as a whole has not achieved a positive test rate of 3% on a seven-day moving average, the governor’s main metric for establishing orange zones where schools are closed, lunchrooms interiors and non-essential high-risk businesses. But the City Council says there is no doubt that it will come.

In detailing his own plan for Thanksgiving, Mayor Bill de Blasio told CNN on Tuesday that he will not be traveling as he usually does and that he will stay at Gracie Mansion to celebrate.

“Don’t travel. Stay local. Keep it small. If you love people, if you love your extended family, help them stay alive so we can celebrate together in person next year,” de Blasio said. “It won’t be a traditional Thanksgiving, but we have to get through this once.”

As COVID-19 continues to spread across the United States, and at a much faster rate than ever, health officials have warned for weeks that they shouldn’t travel during winter break, but not everyone seems to be following their advice. AAA says that about 2.5 million people will fly across the country between Wednesday and Sunday.

Forecasting another spike in coronavirus cases after the holidays, Gov. Andrew Cuomo says he is concerned about the number of people hospitalized and ordered a field hospital in Staten Island to reopen at the request of local hospitals that have been seen overwhelmed by the recent increase.

The number of COVID-19 patients in New York hospitals has risen to about 2,900, which is nearly one and a half times the number hospitalized on November 1. During the past three weeks, hospitalizations increased 128 percent. On its current trajectory, Cuomo believes the number could hit 6,047 in three weeks.

New York has reported an average of around 5,500 new coronavirus cases per day over the past seven days, up 70% from two weeks ago.

The southern half of Staten Island is now in an orange zone under Cuomo’s micro-cluster plan, which will require high-risk schools and businesses like gyms to close temporarily, does not allow eating inside restaurants, and limits gatherings within houses of worship no more than 25 people.

The new yellow zones, which require required tests for students, also went into effect Wednesday in parts of Upper Manhattan, Riverhead, Hampton Bays, Great Neck and Massapequa Park.

The same restrictions imposed in parts of Brooklyn and Queen last month have led to protests and lawsuits from religious institutions; one establishment on Staten Island has declared itself an “autonomous zone,” saying it will defy the governor’s latest order.

“We refuse to abide by the rules and regulations set forth by the Mayor of New York City and the Governor of New York State,” Mac’s Public House said on social media last week. “Every day small businesses live in fear, not just of this virus, but that our governments will take away our livelihoods, even when we are safe. Just to clarify, we recognize this virus as a real threat and continue to take Necessary precautions. What we don’t recognize is that our government has the right to shut us down when we operate safely. “

With the restrictions now in place, restaurants could face fines of up to $ 15,000 per day.

Speaking at a news conference on Long Island on Tuesday, Cuomo again advises against travel and said he changed his plan to celebrate Thanksgiving with his 89-year-old mother in person.

Those who choose to travel will need to complete a questionnaire once they return to New York. If a traveler does not show proof of a recent negative COVID test, they must self-quarantine for 14 days.

New York City Sheriff Joe Fucito said he is establishing vehicle checkpoints at key bridges and crossings throughout New York City, as well as at curb stops for buses going in and out of the city. Agents will inform travelers about quarantine rules.

He cited possible fines of $ 1,000 a day for people who violate travel rules, although officials have previously acknowledged that law enforcement works primarily on the honor system.

In another grim warning earlier this week, Cuomo reminded people to think about what happened in the city during the spring and once again asked them to follow all the health guidelines if they decided to get together.

“How do you forget about all the pain we went through? If we’re not careful, we’ll go back there,” Cuomo emphasized. “We were storing bodies in refrigerated trucks, 800 people died in one day.”

Also on the governor’s mind is what he coined Monday as the “37 days of socializing” – a period of several weeks during the holidays that could send the state’s numbers in an unpredictable nosedive. Cuomo said the state had 5,906 new cases, bringing New York’s total to more than 600,000 the day after the entire tri-state area broke 1,000,000.

Under Cuomo’s Orange Zone rules, schools also move completely remote, a moot point now for New York City public schools, after De Blasio ordered the buildings closed due to city reckoning. of your positivity rate.

De Blasio said Tuesday that the tests will be a key component of returning to in-person learning at some point, which will require “an immense logistical effort.” He suggested that the monthly testing standard for students will need to be more frequent and hinted that students can or should be tested before returning to school buildings. All students could be required to have a testing consent form on file, the mayor told CNN.

When, and if, city schools get the green light, the mayor said the reopening will begin with District 75 schools, then early childhood, 3K and pre-K, before moving on to the rest of the schools. But the city will need the involvement of its teachers for the plan to work, and the director of the teachers union said Tuesday he did not see how schools could reopen before January at the earliest.

The numbers are even more alarming across the river in New Jersey. Newark, the state’s largest city, began its 10-day stay-at-home notice on Wednesday. Mayor Ras Baraka advised that “everyone close up” and get tested during that “holiday” period.

The test positivity rate in Newark is 21 percent, double the number statewide, and in the Ironbound section of the city, Baraka said Saturday that the figure is an alarming 41 percent.

“We cannot risk a continued spread of COVID-19 in our community. We cannot go back to where we were in April and May. But what we can do is urge everyone to be responsible, cautious and think about the greater good. People’s lives depend on this, “he said.

New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy has voiced the same travel concerns, noting that despite all the restrictions the state has imposed, people ultimately have to do the right thing for themselves.

“There’s a lot you can do, so we kindly ask people to keep Thanksgiving really small, immediate family, don’t travel and don’t let your guard down just because you’re home,” Murphy said in an Interview from ” Good Morning America “. “We hope this gets worse before it gets better.”

Two weeks ago, Governor Murphy stopped indoor dining between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., and last week he lowered the indoor gathering limit from 25 to 10 and urged people to stay home for Valentine’s Day. Thanksgiving.

As the country’s uncontrolled spread prompted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to renew calls for Americans not to travel on Thanksgiving, the United States surpassed 12 million COVID-19 cases. over the weekend, according to a count by NBC News.

So far, the US has recorded more than 260,000 COVID-related deaths, according to NBC News.

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