BREAKING: County passes sweeping 'stay at home' order
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Worried about rise in coronavirus cases, county bans unnecessary travel. Expect confusion.
County commissioners issued a sweeping “stay at home” order on Tuesday, requiring residents to remain close to home except to perform essential functions such going to a grocery store or pharmacy or to a job deemed important.
In a meeting on Tuesday afternoon, the county said such an order was necessary to help stop the spread of coronavirus.
The order will surely prompt a lot of confusion about what is allowed and what is forbidden, as well as what jobs are considered essential. Details were still unclear on Tuesday afternoon, and the order was not immediately available on the county’s website.
The county said it was following federal guidelines. The federal government has designated 16 areas of critical infrastructure that constitute essential jobs.
But there will still be uncertainty. As The Ledger reported on Sunday:
California’s order, for instance, includes a 16-page list of the kinds of “critical infrastructure workers” who should stay on the job. Still, the list has produced some confusion over who works in an essential job and who doesn’t, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The Ledger called the county’s hotline, 704-353-1926, and asked if construction was an essential job. The person answering the phone replied: “If you are in the construction business, it is recommended you stay at home.”
The federal guidelines allow for some construction to be declared essential jobs.
The Observer reported:
Under the order, county residents may visit grocery stores, pharmacies, healthcare providers if needed and restaurant drive-throughs and takeout services. They may take walks, play golf, care for family members and help others get needed supplies.
What they can’t do: Go to work unless their jobs provide a defined list of essential services, visit family and friends, including those in hospitals except under limited circumstances or travel unless for a permitted reason.
In recent days, commissioners have growth frustrated with what they say is a nonchalant attitude among some county residents toward the virus. Even though the number of cases is increasing, commissioners and county leaders say they think not enough people are taking the recommendation to avoid large groups seriously.
County Attorney Tyrone Wade said the proclamation was legal, and that local governments have the ability to go further than state proclamations. Gov. Roy Cooper on Monday declined to go as far as commissioners did on Tuesday. The order takes effect on Thursday at 8 a.m.
Commissioner Trevor Fuller said “you can go to almost any place in this county and see crowds of people.” He said he understood that some residents complain that the move goes too far: “This is America, I got that. But we won’t be America if we’re not alive.”
Some business leaders, though, have questioned whether the steps to combat the coronavirus are too aggressive and are causing too much economic pain. That reflects debates taking place in Washington. President Trump said Tuesday that he’d like to see the U.S. “opened up and raring to go by Easter.”
We’ll get you more info on this as it becomes available. Stay tuned.
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Editor: Tony Mecia; Contributing editor: Tim Whitmire