N.Y. IN VIRTUAL LOCK DOWN
Non-essential staff told to stay home
On Friday morning, Gov. Cuomo announced he was putting the Empire State on “pause,” meaning non-essential workers should stay inside their homes at all times except for critical travel, such as going to the grocery store or pharmacy — an unprecedented action aimed at curbing the fastspreading coronavirus, as the number of cases in New York surged above 8,500.
In a press conference from Albany, the governor said he did not make the decision lightly, but stressed that the move was necessary in light of New York becoming a U.S. epicenter of sorts for the respiratory virus.
“This is the most drastic action we can take,” Cuomo said.
“This is not life as usual,” the governorcontinued.“Acceptit, and realize it, and deal with it.”
The extraordinary shutdown — dubbed the “New York State on PAUSE” executive order — mandates that all non-essential businesses cease operations and all non-essential personnel remains at home besides grocery runs, emergencies and some light exercise.
If non-essential employees can’t do their job from home, they’ll be out of work entirely. The state has encouraged affected New Yorkers to apply for unemployment benefits.
The sweeping order takes effect Sunday at 8 p.m.
It’s unclear how long the lockdown will last, though officials said earlier this week that the virus may not peak in New York for another month and a half.
Barber shops, beauty parlors, nail salons and tattoo studios will have to shut down by Saturday at 8 p.m., Cuomo announced as part of a separate executive order, following in the footsteps of restaurants, bars, cinemas, theaters and schools.
Crowds are completely banned, and people are urged to always stay at least 6 feet away from others.
The NYPD will enforce the restrictions, though individuals aren’t at risk of legal consequences. Businesses, on the other hand, can be fined and shuttered if they violate the restrictions.
“These provisions will be enforced,” Cuomo said. “These are not helpful hints.”
Essential business — including grocery and liquor stores, banks, pharmacies, public transportation and public safety agencies, news organizations, gas stations and laundromats — will remain open through the pandemic, although on-site employee capacities will be restricted.
Officials are considering an order that would require grocery stores to limit crowds to 50 people. Food delivery services are still allowed.
Later Friday, health officials announced a total of 8,516 coronavirus cases statewide, meaning New York now accounts for more than half of all confirmed diagnoses in the country. At least 44 people have died in the state, officials said.
Mayor de Blasio, who began calling for a “shelter in place” order for the city earlier this week, reported that 5,151 of those cases are in the five boroughs. At least 29 city residents have died, he added.
“I hate to say this, but we are now the epicenter of the crisis, right here in the nation’s largest city,” de Blasio said in a briefing from City Hall.
De Blasio lauded Cuomo’s lockdown order, calling it “absolutely necessary.”
The governor, who alone has the power to announce a lockdown, was initially hesitant to declare a “shelter in place” order, saying it would cause unnecessary panic.
But Cuomo had an apparent change-of-heart Friday, though he was careful to describe his order as a “pause” — not as a “shelter in place” command.
“We’re closing the valve,” he said.
The strictest lockdown rules, which Cuomo called “Matilda’s Law” in honor of his 88-year-old mother, mandate that any New Yorkers above 70 stay home at all times and rely on younger people to grocery shop for them, since that age group is at risk of suffering more severe symp
toms from the virus.
Seniors are also required to wear masks while in the company of others, though they’re discouraged from visiting households with multiple people.
Residents older than 50 who have preexisting conditions or are otherwise immunocompromised are also considered part of the “Matilda’s Law” category.
New Yorkers will be allowed to walk the streets without getting hounded by cops, Cuomo said. However, he said they should remain indoors to the “greatest extent” possible.
If people wish to exercise, they can, Cuomo and de Blasio said. But they should not be “playing basketball with five other people,” the governor added.
Discussions are ongoing with governors of other Northeastern states, including New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Delaware, to implement similar shutdown policies.
California instituted almost identical stay-at-home restrictions earlier this week.
President Trump, who usually has nothing but scorn for Cuomo and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, welcomed the lockdowns of the coastal states.
“I applaud them,” Trump said during a White House briefing of the governors. “They’re taking very strong, bold steps and I applaud them. We’re working very closely together.”
The shutdown of New York has nearly no historical equivalent.
In the wake of the 9/11 attacks, movement in Manhattan was sharply curtailed, though the rest of the state operated mostly as usual.
Despite the “PAUSE” order, Cuomo noted that hospitals across the state are experiencing severe shortages of medical supplies, especially ventilators, masks and gloves, amid a spiraling uptick of coronavirus patients.
He reiterated a call for the
Trump administration to help the state secure such essentials.
“We need those ventilators,” Cuomo said. “Ventilators to this war are what missiles were to WWII.”
Trump said at the White House that he had invoked a 1950 law that would fast-track production of the supplies, though he did not offer a timeline for when they will arrive in New York.
The pandemic virus, which has infected nearly 300,000 worldwide and is grounding entire economies to a halt, causes mild or moderate symptoms in most people, such as fever and cough. However, older adults and those with preexisting health issues can suffer severe illness, including pneumonia.
As the city began to hunker down for the long haul, de Blasio denoted the seismic consequences of the virus.
“We’re in a brand new reality,” he said. “We have not gone through something like this.”