Kemp extends state lockdown to April 30

With dozens dying in senior care homes, Kemp on Wednesday ordered Georgia’s 10.6 million residents to stay home through the end of the month. His previous order lasted only to April 13. Calling the disease “the evil virus,” the governor said during a news conference that his shelterat-home mandate may be start

ing to curb the spread. “We’re encouraged,” he said. “I don’t want to tell people that. ... I don’t want Georgians to take their foot off the gas.”

Kemp was among the last governors to mandate social distanc

ing. When he acted, his executive order wiped out stricter rules

already imposed by many local governments, including beach closures. Glynn County Commission Chairman Mike Browning, a Republican, was quoted as saying, “There is no leadership in this state.”

But Kemp has stood firm, defending his decision to reopen beaches, state parks, golf courses and other outdoor venues. They provide needed recreational outlets to Georgians otherwise stuck in their homes, he said. He has stopped short of imposing restrictions on religious services, instead requiring social distancing at houses of worship. On Friday, he pleaded with Georgians not to attend churches in person on Easter Sunday.

The governor did impose stricter rules on senior care homes as officials acknowledged for the first time that COVID-19 has killed at least 81 residents of those facilities. He barred visitors and nonessential workers from entering nursing homes, told the facilities to cancel group activities and meals, and ordered the quarantin

ing of any nursing home worker who tests positive for the virus.

The state Department of Public Health declined to identify facilities where residents have died.