Data: Residents flock to parks, still avoid shopping
The most recent data from tech company Google shows Humboldt County residents are staying home less and going to parks a lot more.
Google’s COVID-19 mobility report shows Humboldt County residents went to parks 112% more, to transit stations 24% more and were home 2% more on June 14 compared to the baseline median values between Jan. 3 and Feb. 6. In early May those numbers were 21% higher, 51% lower and 13% from the baseline, respectively.
People are also returning to the workplace, with people at work 40% less in May compared to 13% less as of June 14.
People aren’t shopping or recreating at the same levels as they were in January though the numbers are improving. In May people were going out to retail and recreation businesses 42% less and as of June 14 it’s 31% less.
Facebook data shows Humboldt County residents are moving around 3% more than before the shelter-in-place order compared to 20% less in mid-May. The number of residents staying put has stayed relatively the same, hovering in the 20 to 30% range since early May.
Humboldt is one of the 19 out of 58 California counties that has increased its movement to higher than baseline levels, according to Facebook, but not as much as Trinity County, where people are moving around 40% higher than the baseline, and Mono County, where it’s 39% higher.
The rest of the state is following a similar trajectory. Californians went from frequenting retail and recreation businesses 46% less than usual in May to 32% less than usual as of June 14, according to Google. Californians were visiting parks 18% less than before the shelter-in-place in May, but were visiting them 19% more as of June 14.
Californians were staying at home 20% more than before the shelter-in-place started in May, but that’s dropped to 6%, according to Google.