Coronavirus updates: Sacramento issues formal stay-home order; 16 California deaths
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As testing capabilities ramp up, coronavirus infection totals continue to climb at an exponential rate in the United States as government authorities at the federal, state and local levels are still implementing extreme measures in hopes of slowing the spread of the virus, which has now killed nearly 10,000 people worldwide.
The U.S. had surpassed 10,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 by Thursday morning, according to data by Johns Hopkins University, with more than 4,000 reported in New York state.
The Johns Hopkins map, as of 9:30 a.m. Thursday, tracked more than 850 cases and 16 deaths in California, with that death total confirmed by the state later in the morning.
In unprecedented measures designed to flatten the growth curve of the virus and keep infection totals to a rate that healthcare systems can manage, a number of California counties have put mandatory “shelter-in-place” orders in effect, so far mainly in the Bay Area and Sacramento areas.
Sacramento County on Thursday became the latest to announce a legally mandated shelter-in-place order, which will go into place at 11:59 p.m. With more than 1.5 million residents, the county is currently the third most populous in the state to have mandated people to stay home unless necessary, and for non-essential businesses to close.
The order includes all incorporated cities — Sacramento city, Elk Grove, Folsom, Rancho Cordova, Citrus Heights, Galt and Isleton — and unincorporated areas like Arden Arcade, Carmichael, Fair Oaks, Foothill Farms, North Highlands, Antelope, La Riviera, Gold River, Vineyard, Elverta, Rio Linda, Orangevale, Mather, Rancho Murieta, Walnut Grove, Wilton and other Delta areas east of the Sacramento River.
The latest order pushes the total of Californians under shelter-in-place orders to about 9.5 million, more than 24 percent of the state’s population, according to figures counted by The Sacramento Bee.
An enormous number of events and large gatherings throughout the state and the nation, from college graduation ceremonies to concerts and music festival to all major sports, have ceased almost completely.
Sacramento’s latest figures: 45 infected, 3 dead
In announcing the mandatory order, for “all individuals living in the county to stay at their place of residence except for essential activities,” Sacramento County in a Thursday update disclosed its third coronavirus death and said there have been 45 confirmed cases, an increase of five from 40 the previous day.
The order carries the force of law. Earlier this week, County Health Director Peter Beilenson announced the same restrictions, but issued them in the form of a directive, which did not have the force of law.
A violation of the order can be treated as a misdemeanor crime. However, Beilenson and other county leaders said the intent is not to cite or arrest anyone, but to have the ability to require bars to close and restaurants to only serve take-out of delivery food.
The order extends through April 7.
California updates statewide numbers
The state Department of Public Health in a Thursday update said there are now 675 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and 16 deaths, with numbers accurate as of 6 p.m. Wednesday.
Of 651 cases not related to repatriation flights, the source for 281 of those cases remains under investigation, 181 were community acquired, 92 were acquired person-to-person with a known case involved and the final 97 were travel-related, according to the public health website.
California needs swabs, masks and ventilators, Newsom says
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday said California’s lack of swabs, a key element in coronavirus testing kits, is halting the ability to expand drive-up test sites. Widespread, easily accessible testing is viewed as a critical step in slowing the spread of COVID-19.
Newsom said he spoke with President Donald Trump on Tuesday and the president promised the state more swabs.
Newsom has repeatedly said he has no criticism for Trump’s coronavirus response. Yet his state is still waiting on needed equipment from the federal government to run tests and prepare its medical system for a surge in new patients — equipment the Democratic governor says he’s been requesting for weeks.
In addition to swabs, Newsom says the state relies on the federal government to provide more chemical reagents to actually run the tests.
California has called on the Federal Emergency Management Agency for more ventilators, protective glasses, masks and gowns. In a Wednesday news conference, Newsom described desperate hospital officials asking seamstresses in Los Angeles’ garment district to sew more masks, buying swimming goggles for medical workers and running to hardware stores for gloves.
“We certainly are going to need more support,” Newsom said.
City of Sacramento community centers to close
The city of Sacramento’s community centers will close temporarily, starting 5 p.m. Thursday, according to a city blog post.
City officials are deciding how to best utilize the buildings during the coronavirus outbreak, the post said.
“Youth, Parks, & Community Enrichment is abiding by Sacramento County’s legal order to limit activity to only the most essential needs in our community,” Mario Lara, Director of Youth, Parks, & Community Enrichment, said in the blog post. “We understand the inconvenience this causes people who visit our centers, but we all must join together to do our part to slow the spread of COVID-19.”
The centers include: Belle Cooledge Community Center; Coloma Community Center; George Sim Community Center; Hagginwood Community Center; Hart Senior Center; Oak Park Community Center; South Natomas Community Center; Southside Clubhouse; Sam & Bonnie Pannell Community Center.
More closures: DMV driving tests, more shopping centers
The California Department of Motor Vehicles announced Wednesday all walk-in visits and all driving tests are suspended for at least the next 30 days, starting Thursday.
This means DMV offices statewide will turn away anyone who comes in without an appointment.
They also shortened their hours, which had been extended due to customers seeking Real ID licenses ahead of the Oct. 1 deadline. Going forward, DMV offices will be open for appointments only on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The decision came as both DMV customers and employees complained the agency isn’t doing enough to protect people from the spread of COVID-19.
Jump, the red, shareable e-bicycles and scooters popular on the Sacramento grid, is suspending service in that market to curb COVID-19 spread, parent company Uber announced late Wednesday.
Also on Wednesday, the Folsom Premium Outlets became the second major Sacramento-area shopping center, after Arden Fair mall, to shut down due to the pandemic. The outlets will close through March 29.
The Westfield Galleria at Roseville in an update Thursday morning announced that most of its stores are temporarily closed, but that some retailers “may still be open so that ‘essential’ retail remains in operation for customers.” Mall officials asked customers to check the galleria’s website for those stores and their hours, but to also confirm with the individual stores directly.
Sacramento City Unified extended school closures
On Thursday, Sacramento City Unified School District announced schools will closed through spring break, and will open Monday, April 13, at the earliest. The district said it will provide updates if additional date changes are made.
The decision came after Sacramento County issued a public health order directing all residents to stay at home, unless they need to access essential services.
The district will continue to provide meals and have increased the number of sites and hours where meals are provided.
The California Department of Education provided resources for students here and Sacramento City Unified expanded online enrichment resources to support its students.
What does sheltering in place mean? Which counties are doing it?
Yolo County on Wednesday joined 10 Bay Area jurisdictions in legally mandating a “shelter-in-place” order, becoming the first in the four-county Sacramento region to do so.
San Francisco, Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Santa Clara, San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties gave the order Monday; Monterey, Sonoma and San Benito counties did the same Tuesday; Yolo County and the city of Fresno did so Wednesday; and so far, Sacramento County has made the call Thursday.
Ventura County on Tuesday issued a shelter-in-place for older residents only, the Los Angeles Times reports. Sacramento and Placer county leaders have strongly urged residents to follow a “stay-at-home” directive, but the order was not a legal mandate as of Thursday morning.
Note: The Sacramento Bee and McClatchy news sites have lifted the paywall on this developing story, providing critical information to readers. To support vital reporting such as this, please consider a digital subscription.
Yolo’s order, which is similar to those in place in the Bay Area, “limits activity, travel and business functions to only the most essential needs,” the county said in a statement. Violation is a misdemeanor, the order states.
The order defines “essential” activities to include those related to health and safety; shopping for food or other necessary supplies; outdoor activities such as walking, hiking or running so long as social distancing is maintained; and traveling to or from work at an essential business which include grocery stores, health care, “essential infrastructure,” gas stations, banks and several others.
It also calls for all Yolo County residents to “shelter at their place of residence” and “at all times as reasonably possible maintain social distancing of at least six feet from any other person” except those within their household.
Yolo County spokeswoman Jenny Tan said health officials have talked with law enforcement officials and asked them to educate people they approach who are violating the order, only taking enforcement action against “egregious” violations.
Supermarkets respond to supply issues, apparent hoarding
West Sacramento-headquartered Raley’s, one of Northern California’s predominant supermarket chains, is working with suppliers to prioritize restocking shelves, Raley’s CEO Keith Knopf said in a statement posted on the company’s website.
Until demand returns to normal, Knopf says Raley’s has a limit of two-per-family on some items, including milk, eggs, water, fresh-packaged chicken and paper products.
Raley’s is also is mass hiring personal shoppers to meet the extreme demands and the company is reaching out to business partners, such as hotel and restaurants, to provide their temporarily displaced employees work opportunities, Knopf said.
Wendy Gutshall, a spokeswoman for Safeway, said that that chain is asking customers to respect quantity limits of select, high-demand items such as hand sanitizers and household cleaners. Gutshall urged customers to check with their local store about specific stock levels and purchase limits, and noted that some stores have adjusted business hours to give employees time to restock and sanitize stores.
Save Mart is trying to hire nearly 1,000 employees throughout California and northern Nevada due to increasing demands. Spokeswoman Victoria Castro told The Sacramento Bee on Wednesday that the Modesto-based company has “a steady stream of products coming in from our warehouses.”
Where do the coronavirus numbers stand?
By 11 a.m. Pacific Time on Thursday, a map and data maintained by Johns Hopkins University showed more than 235,000 global cases of the coronavirus and over 9,700 deaths.
While 81,000 of those cases are in mainland China, the rate of confirmed, reported cases there has slowed considerably. Italy, with nearly 41,000 infections and now more than 3,400 deaths, has passed China’s death toll of 3,100 and is considered the current epicenter of coronavirus activity.
The United States had more than 10,700 COVID-19 cases as of late Thursday morning, according to Johns Hopkins, fewer than Iran (more than 18,000), Spain (17,000) and Germany (14,000) but surpassing France (9,000) and South Korea (just over 8,500).
Johns Hopkins now tallies more than 150 deaths across the United States, with 68 in Washington state, 20 in New York and 16 in California.
Reminder: What is COVID-19? How is it spread?
Coronavirus is spread through contact between people within six feet of each other, especially through coughing and sneezing that expels respiratory droplets that land in the mouths or noses of people nearby. The CDC says it’s possible to catch the disease COVID-19 by touching something that has the virus on it, and then touching your own face, “but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.”
Symptoms of the virus that causes COVID-19 include fever, cough and shortness of breath, which may occur two days to two weeks after exposure. Most develop only mild symptoms, but some people develop more severe symptoms, including pneumonia, which can be fatal. The disease is especially dangerous to the elderly and others with weaker immune systems.
Sacramento Bee reporters Rosalio Ahumada, Cathie Anderson, Tony Bizjak, Sophia Bollag, Marcos Bret ó n, Dale Kasler, Andrew Sheeler, Theresa Clift, Alexandra Yoon-Hendricks; and McClatchyDC reporter Michael Wilner contributed to this report.
