Like many cities and counties across the United States, Los Angeles is seeing an alarming increase in the number of COVID-19 cases recorded daily. As a result, Mayor Eric Garcetti issued Targeted Safer at Home Orders on Wednesday. The orders halt in-person operations for businesses, except those that fall under the exemptions listed, and limit gatherings to single-households, with the exceptions being faith-based and protests.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti is pleading with his residents to cancel all non-essential activities and travel as cases of the coronavirus surge in the California city.
On Wednesday, Garcetti issued a “Targeted Safer at Home Order,” requiring all L.A. residents to stay at home, and prohibiting public or private gatherings of more than one household, with an exception for faith-based services and protests.
“Our City is now close to a devastating tipping point, beyond which the number of hospitalized patients would start to overwhelm our hospital system, in turn risking needless suffering and death,” the order reads. “These unfortunate facts about the spread of COVID-19 in our City mean that we must resume some of the more restrictive measures we instituted in the Spring.”
The order requires businesses to stop all in-person operations, though lists a number of exemptions — including grocery stores, gas stations, banks and more. It also exempts essential workers, such as first responders, government employees, those who care for others and infrastructure workers.
Restaurants are no longer allowed to have in-person dining, and can only operate through pick-up or delivery.
“My message couldn’t be simpler,” Garcetti said during a press briefing on Wednesday. “It’s time to hunker down. It’s time to cancel everything. And if it isn’t essential, don’t do it.”“Don’t meet up with others outside your household. Don’t host a gathering. Don’t attend a gathering,” he said. “And following our targeted Safer at Home order, if you’re able to stay home, stay home.”
Mayor Garcetti’s orders did not come as much of a surprise to many who live in Los Angeles. County of Los Angeles Public Health had already issued these warnings on November 27th so many of us had begun quarantine arrangements before Garcetti made it official. The LA Public Health directive in November came after reporting an average of 4,571 case per day for five consecutive days. When Garcetti issued his orders, those numbers had jumped to 6,000 new cases recorded that day, with close to 2,500 hospitalized. Gov. Newsom issued his own regional Stay at Home orders on Thursday, which are based on the projected numbers expected throughout the state’s ICUs.
I don’t fully understand the legalize of Garcetti’s Targeted Safer at Home Orders, but the majority of the text are the exemptions to the order. A few businesses, such as nail and hair salons that were closed completely back in April, are being allowed to stay open this time, operating at a 20% customer capacity. Gyms are allowed to operate at a 50% outdoor facility capacity. The good news is most of those businesses have been operating in those conditions or close to those conditions already so it’s not as big a hit this time. Trails and outdoor spaces remain open for hiking and physical recreation, although parks and playgrounds are closed. As far as I can tell, these new orders are directly targeting get-togethers and parties. And I’m not sure he had a choice, especially with celebrities and social influencers hosting well-publicized personal celebrations. Unfortunately, even if we know who is to blame, it doesn’t change the fact that our COVID units are to capacity, people are suffering, and businesses are being limited or asked to close during their most profitable quarter.
The new year brings hope –– for vaccines and for stopping this pandemic.
But here's the truth: we're in for a long, hard winter.
As the worst hits us, stay home as much as you can. Cancel any non-essential activities.
Hunker down, L.A. We'll get through this together. pic.twitter.com/6TkVsTfPzP
— MayorOfLA (@MayorOfLA) December 3, 2020
Remembering those we’ve lost due to COVID-19 and honoring their memories.
They are a constant reminder of why we wear our masks, stay home as much as possible, and take every precaution to keep our loved ones safe. Please keep it up.https://t.co/xXQoHMplu4
— MayorOfLA (@MayorOfLA) November 23, 2020
Photo credit:Instagram, Twitter and Getty Images
We have a tough winter to get through. I’m hunkering down for another March/April in NY, except it’s going to be double that time I figure. Dec. Jan. Feb. March. But the vaccine is waiting on the other side, and instead of saying winter is coming, we can now say with real hope, summer is coming. Summer 2021 is coming and it’s going to be so much better then. Stay alive, and don’t kill anyone through selfishness until then. We can do it.
I’m sorry but the US sucks. There would have been no problem getting people to stay at home if we had implemented a monthly stipend like other countries. You can’t just tell people to stay home with no way to earn money to pay rent or buy food.
^^^^^^
100%
Absolutely! Stimulus check every month.
Exactly what I’ve been saying to my husband and one of my good friends. We need to close down things like indoor dining, but I get the reluctance to do so when you’re going to basically wipe out an entire industry, since takeout isn’t going to make up the gap in revenue (or tips.) That’s where money to help bridge the gap is essential.
I simply don’t get why they leave the churches open. Same in my country. How tf can a church be considered essential, but restaurants are closed? Last time I checked nobody died from having to pray alone in their home. Pretty sure that people need food for survival though. I know that take-out is an option, and I am not saying that restaurants should be open. They should definitely be closed, but so should be churches, and some people should check their priorities.
They’re open because a bunch of maggots in Michigan and Pennsylvania elected Trump and he has stacked the Supreme Court with anti-science Christians who won’t let elected officials take reasonable health precautions to stop mass gatherings of selfish religious zealots.
I agree. The pandering to the religious zealots is ridiculous. It basically negates all other measures if the groups are large, indoors and unmasked. I feel like we will never get through this because of peoples’ insistence on politicizing all this. It’s insane.
If nail salons can open at 20% capacity, if gyms can open, a church can surely do the same.
I haven’t been to church since March. But for those who do go, they have to sign up online, they wear masks the whole time, they’re distanced from anyone except their family, and there’s no singing.
A hair and nail salon at 20% capacity may likely only have a few people in it at a time. Also, those services can’t be conducted remotely. However, a church or religious service would likely have many more people inside than a 20% capacity salon. Religious services can also be conducted via streaming video. Plus salons haven’t been superspreader locations in the same way some places of worship have been. So the likelihood of spread is different for these scenarios.
Though I also think getting your nails done isn’t “essential” and shouldn’t be permitted.
@sojaschnitzel
I just moved away from California a month ago, where I spent my entire life except for a few years. I and others still there can and will tell you most definitely that the churches are NOT open. For a while recently they were operating outside at very limited capacity. But no, they’re not open, esp not now with Garcetti’s latest order. I don’t know where you’re getting that information. Certainly not from people in California.
Meanwhile however, I have moved to the Deep South. Where I am the churches are open. So are the restaurants, some of them packed with people eating inside. Go figure. Of course, that may change quite soon. We shall see.
cBers from other countries besides the US, are getting pandemic payments right?? Why is the US the only place that won’t pay people to stay home.
Yes, we were paid when the government implemented the hard lockdown. All companies received funds to allow “working from home” methods, and to guarantee employers wages in case of temporary closure and wfh was not possible. And the ones that could not stop (like some factories) got finatial support to allow bigger rotation and implementation of security measures.
Ireland here and yes we were paid without any problems on hard lockdown. It was paid by government and employers.
Mexico isn’t getting help paychecks either. So that’s why we are the third or fourth country with the worst Covid scenario. Pero pile are out making end meet, most of the people here live on payment to payment basis, to there’s no way they can stay home. They have to go out and find sustain.
It’s a hard situation for most of half of the country’s population
Belgium here. We are also paid if you cant work because of COVID, with a maximum of 1.400euro/month for fulltime employment. And if you have a business, you get a certain percentage based on your normal revenue. So that covers the basics, but for most people you can’t survive with it a whole year… So poverty is really growing, all charities are saying how many more people they see, people who own a house and have a job, but still can’t afford food anymore…
Yes, we were paid when the government implemented the hard lockdown. All companies received funds to allow “working from home” methods, and to guarantee employers wages in case of temporary closure and wfh was not possible. And the ones that could not stop (like some factories) got finatial support to allow bigger rotation and implementation of security measures.
The orders make absolutely no sense. Don’t ride the buses or ride a scooter but the tattoo parlors and hair/nail salons (which are not essential businesses) stay open. Essential businesses (I thought) meant grocery stores, drug stores, doctors offices, food banks, gas stations etc. I didn’t know that tattoos are an essential necessity during a pandemic. I assumed going by March, that essential was “shelter, food, water, gasoline, medical attention”.
Church is not an essential business when people can pray from home. Nobody ever said that you had to be in a crowd of people to worship the sky guy so this is greed via the church organizations plain and simple. They want those donations in person regardless if it might infect/kill everyone in the place to get it. Guess they’ve never heard of asking for donations over the internet.
I’m so glad I’m an atheist.
I think that the thing is tattoo parlors and salons and the like is to somewhat mitigate the potential financial impact. These businesses absolutely cannot operate in a virtual setting so they can be open but only under restrictions. It isnt great but it might actually encourage more compliance and less anger. Less hand wringing.
But it does ensure that office workers, for example, and people who absolutely can do their jobs from home will be able to. There are a lot of bosses who are just dicks and make their workers come to the office to work on a computer.
Leah, many churches do have online donation forms (or if they hadn’t had them, they figured out how to do it in March).
Catholics believe that Jesus is present in the Eucharist. You don’t have to believe it, but they do. And that’s why some people want to be there in-person.
I have a friend who is Greek orthodox. Her church is still having services, socially distanced of course, but they all still drink from the same communal wine cup. I asked my friend about this. She said they believe their faith will protect them. I have yet to hear if anyone has gotten sick. I wouldn’t touch that communal wine cup with a 10 foot pole even if there wasn’t a pandemic; my immune system is compromised.
Have they stopped filming ads, TV, and movies in LA and California?
There are projects filming everywhere despite local restrictions. In Wilmington, NC, which isnt far from me, they just wrapped filming on Scream 5. I remember thinking, of all the things to risk your life for, its gonna be Scream 5?