'No Good News': Coronavirus Red Zone Covers Most Of CT (Map)

CONNECTICUT — As the coronavirus positivity rate vaulted to 6.1 percent and 11 more municipalities were designated "red alert" towns for the spread of the coronavirus, Gov. Ned Lamont said he was keeping every option on the table.

The positivity rate is the highest the state has seen since June 1.

"Couple that with hospitalizations continuing to creep up and the fatalities, there's no good news in those numbers," Lamont said at a news conference in Hartford Thursday. "And it's going to get worse before it gets better."

Connecticut's numbers are still stellar compared to almost everywhere else in the country. The state's seven-day average of positive test results is 3.1 percent, well below the national rate of 6.3 percent, but a good jump above the 1.6 percent of nine days ago. Those statistics do not include cases in prisons or long-term care facilities.

As of Thursday, over two-thirds of Connecticut towns have been coded as either red or orange zones, the highest warning levels for the spread of the virus.

Towns in the red zone have been permitted to roll back to phase 2 and impose greater restrictions on businesses in the interest of slowing the spread of the virus. Lamont is allowing orange municipalities to roll back to phase 2 as well, "erring on the side of caution."

Windham and New Haven have already tightened restrictions on businesses back to phase 2. Lamont indicated that Stamford was on track to make the same decision in the next few days.

The phase shift brings the capacity in restaurants and personal care facilities — nail salons, barbers, etc. — back to 50 percent, down from the 75 percent they have enjoyed since September. It would also limit gatherings to 25 people, and close indoor performance venues.

The state only moved into phase 3 a month ago.

Lamont said he was also taking a hard look at winter sports, noting that the state has tracked "about 45 hockey-related infections."

The continued spread of the virus comes even while the "overwhelming majority" of restaurants and ice rinks have been strict in enforcing coronavirus regulations in their establishments.

For the few high-profile bad apples and "bars masquerading as restaurants," Lamont said local law enforcement and health departments would continue their crackdown, while at the state level, "we're looking at liquor licenses."

"I'm doing everything I can to keep our economy going, I'm doing everything I can to allow us to have some level of normalcy," Lamont said. He cited Europe, which he said typically experiences the effects of the pandemic 3-4 weeks before Connecticut, as "starting to shut down," and enforcing strict curfews on pubs and restaurants.

When asked whether there was a certain positivity rate which might cause him to bring the entire state back to phase 2, Lamont said, "We're getting close." He said he was talking to his fellow governors in the region about "sports, restaurants and everything else if this gets above 6 percent."

Lamont acknowledged that the borders between towns are porous and that nothing prevents someone from a red zone traveling into a gray zone spreading infection. But he said the state would continue to target the red zones with its track and trace initiatives, extended testing and strict enforcement to "see what we can do to contain the fire."

The governor said he looked to the number of hospitalizations as the "trigger" for stricter regulations, adding, "We're not there yet."

"We've been living under this COVID cloud a long time, we've been following the protocols pretty good as a state, and now we're getting hit," Lamont said. "Let's face it, if this infection rate continues on an upward trend, we're going to have to make some changes to make sure you're safe."

See Also: 30 CT Towns Now In 'Red Alert' Zone As Coronavirus Cases Soar

Red Alert Towns

Ansonia, Bridgeport, Canterbury, Cromwell, Danbury, East Hartford, Ellington, Franklin, Griswold, Groton, Hartford, Killingly, Lisbon, Middlebury, Middlefield, Montville, New Britain, New London, North Canaan, Norwalk, Norwich, Old Saybrook, Plainfield, Sprague, Stamford, Waterbury, Waterford, Watertown, Windham and Wolcott.

Orange Alert Towns

Andover, Avon, Beacon Falls, Berlin, Bethany, Bethel, Bethlehem, Bloomfield, Bristol, Brookfield, Brooklyn, Burlington, Chester, Clinton, Colchester, East Hampton, East Haven, East Lyme, Derby, Durham, Fairfield, Farmington, Hamden, Ledyard, Manchester, Marlborough, Middletown, Meriden, Monroe, Naugatuck, New Haven, Newington, North Branford, North Haven, Plainfield, Prospect, Seymour, Sherman, South Windsor, Salem, Stratford, Thomaston, Tolland, Torrington, Vernon, Voluntown, Wallingford, Watertown, West Hartford, West Haven, Wethersfield, Windsor, Woodbridge and Woodstock.

This article originally appeared on the Across Connecticut Patch