Gov. Ivey Extends Safer At Home Order For Alabama
MONTGOMERY, AL — Amid rapidly increasing COVID-19 numbers, the state of Alabama has been listed among states considered hot spots for the virus, even prompting travel restrictions imposed by New York to and from Alabama.
Gov. Kay Ivey referenced this increase in COVID-19 cases and deaths from the virus when she announced Tuesday that she is extending the statewide Safer at Home order — previously set to expire July 3 — through the end of July.
"I am fully aware of the physical, emotional, and mental pain this is causing," Ivey said. "We’ve lost family and friends to a new and deadly virus. We are still in the thick of this."
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Ivey did say shutting the state down again was not an option at this point. "I firmly believe you cannot have a life without a strong livelihood," Ivey said. Ivey also opted not to close Alabama’s beaches, which some communities in Florida have done to prevent outbreaks during the July 4 holiday.
Alabama has confirmed 10,713 new cases of COVID-19 statewide in the last two weeks. As well, Tuesday the Alabama Department of Public Health reported 21 deaths in the last 24 hours kin its latest COVID-19 report, bringing the statewide total to 926 deaths from the virus.
Total, Alabama has confirmed 37,536 cases of COVID-19 out of 406,143 tests conducted. Of those cases, 18,866 patients are presumed to have recovered.
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This article originally appeared on the Birmingham Patch
