“It’s time to take more dramatic measures,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said.
Schools are closed for New York City’s 1.1 million public school students.
Taking drastic action in the face of the coronavirus, New York City is
shu tting down its public school system , the nation’s largest with 1.1 million students, and closing the restaurants and bars that Mayor Bill de Blasio called “the heart and soul of our city.”
“I’m very, very concerned that we see a rapid spread of this disease, and it’s time to take more dramatic measures, ”Mr. de Blasio said Sunday afternoon of the school closings. “This is a decision I have taken with no joy and a lot of pain.”
He announced on Sunday night that bars and restaurants will be limited to takeout and delivery effective Tuesday.
Public schools on Long Island and in Westchester County will also close this week, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said on Sunday. The governor ordered New York City school officials to develop a plan within hours on how to offer child care to students of parents who work in essential industries like health care and to provide food to students who will need meals.
In New York City, public schools are now closed for all students and staff. On March 31, the city plans to restart school via remote learning.
“These children need you,” the mayor said in an appeal to the city’s teachers. “Keep their education going.”
The decision to close the schools came after the mayor faced increasing pressure throughout the day, including from the governor.
Some campuses will reopen on March 31 as “enrichment centers.” They will be set up to provide instruction and services for vulnerable children, likely including homeless students and children with special needs.
The mayor said the goal is to reopen all the schools on April , though he cautioned that could be overly optimistic. He said there was a strong chance that the schools would not reopen at all this school year.
“The facts have given us no other choice,” he said.
All public and private schools in Nassau County, which includes some of the most densely populated areas of Long Island, will be closed starting Monday, Laura Curran, the county executive, announced Sunday.
As of Sunday, New York State had confirmed coronavirus cases, officials said. The largest concentration of cases was in New York City, where 400 people have tested positive. There were confirmed cases in Westchester County, just north of New York City.
On Long Island, there were (confirmed cases in Nassau County and at least 68 in Suffolk County.
The city’s department of health and mental hygiene issued guidance on Sunday urging New Yorkers to act as if they personally had been exposed to coronavirus.
In New Jersey, Gov. Philip D. Murphy said Sunday that a statewide school shutdown was “imminent.”
In Connecticut, Gov. Ned Lamont said Sunday that all public schools in the state will shut down on Tuesday and stay closed until at least March .
Mayor de Blasio on Sunday night enacted new restrictions on public life in New York City after coming under increasing pressure from other elected officials, who had (raised growing alarms) that the city was moving far too slowly as the coronavirus outbreak spread.
They pointed out that on Saturday night bars and restaurants in many parts of the city were still relatively crowded , elevating the risk that the coronavirus would continue to spread rapidly.
Sunday night, Mr. de Blasio issued a statement saying that he was closing restaurants and bars, effective Tuesday at 9 a.m.
“Our lives are all changing in ways that were unimaginable just a week ago,” he said. “We are taking a series of actions that we never would have taken otherwise in an effort to save the lives of loved ones and our neighbors.”
On Monday, Mr. de Blasio said that feeding stations would have to be created to serve different groups, including schoolchildren whose buildings had shut down.
“Let’s be clear,” the mayor said. “We’re getting close to a reality where the government has to insure that the food supply, that it is not only available but that it’s equitably distributed.”
“This is not a decision I make lightly,” he said. “These places are part of the heart and soul of our city. They are part of what it means to be a New Yorker. But our city is facing an unprecedented threat, and we must respond with a wartime mentality. ”
In a statement earlier on Sunday, Corey Johnson, the Council speaker, had called for the closing of “All nonessential services, including bars and restaurants. We should keep essentials like grocery stores, bodegas, pharmacies, and banks open. And restaurants that can make deliveries should be able to stay open to provide delivery service. ”
On Sunday afternoon, Mr. de Blasio announced a number of other measures: Ordering hospitals in the city to cancel all elective surgery, postponing an upcoming election for the Queens borough president and closing city senior centers.
In addition, Mr . Cuomo asked all nonessential state employees who work in the southern part of the state – New York City, Long Island, and Rockland and Westchester Counties – to work from home. Members of the Legislature should return to work in Albany, he said, likening them to soldiers during a war.
“The government must function,” he said.
While he continued to call for social distancing and sounded the alarm about the lack of hospital space, the governor also urged people to remain calm.
No elected officials are calling for closing off the city by shutting down mass transit or roadways.
The officials have emphasized that mass transit must be running in order to ensure that the health care system continues to operate. If the subway were shut down, health care workers would have difficulty reaching hospitals and other health care facilities.
In New Jersey, the mayor of Teaneck asked the city’s
Gov. Philip D. Murphy said on Sunday that a statewide curfew remains “under consideration” and that a statewide shutdown of schools “is imminent.” The New Jersey system serves 1.4 million public school students.
New Jersey had confirmed coronavirus cases as of Sunday afternoon, an increase of 49 new cases from the day before. Two people in the state have died after testing positive for the virus.
Experts warn the outbreak could lead to widespread job losses and business failures.
New York City faces the prospect of sweeping job losses and business failures , with movie theaters, Broadway, bars, restaurants and tourism all closing down or heavily restricted.
Ronnie Lowenstein, director of the city’s Independent Budget Office, said the economic fallout from the coronavirus outbreak could be more severe than the toll of crises like the 2019 terrorist attacks or the financial meltdown.
New York City, which has more than , restaurants and , hotel rooms, is particularly at risk because of its reliance on tourism.
James Parrott, director of economic and fiscal policies at the Center for New York City Affairs at The New School, said the city is likely to lose as many as , 14 jobs that cater to foreign and domestic visitors, with lost wages amounting to $ 1 billion a month.
Mr. de Blasio, asked on Monday morning about relief for businesses and workers affected by the decision to close bars and restaurants, said, “We’re getting grants and loans and things for small businesses, but that’s a small piece.”
He added: “We need a massive federal relief program.”
Speaking on “Good Morning America,” the Governor called for the Army Corps to help retrofit facilities like college dormitories into makeshift medical wards. He said the state government does not have the capacity to quickly build more hospitals on its own.
The state has approximately 3, ICU beds, about 96 percent of which are already occupied, the governor said.
“This is a disaster waiting to happen,” Mr. Cuomo said of the limited hospital capacity.
The governor also called for more federal guidance on restrictions on schools, restaurants, bars and other gathering spaces. He called the current approach, in which individual cities and states make their own decisions, “an ad hoc system that is not going to work.”
“There has been no country that has handled this without a national response, ”he said.
New York courts postpone many cases.
State courts in New York will postpone many criminal cases indefinitely and stop performing all but the most essential functions to help stop the spread of the coronavirus, officials said.
In addition, all eviction actions and pending eviction orders have been suspended statewide until further notice.
The state’s chief administrative judge sent a memorandum to judges, clerks and other employees on Sunday that said as of 5 pm On Monday, all nonessential court functions will be postponed until further notice in response to the coronavirus.
The order will put hundreds of cases on hold. People charged with felonies who are out on bail will have their cases adjourned “until further notice,” the chief administrative judge, Lawrence K. Marks, said in the memo.
Defendants who are awaiting trial in jail will also have their hearings either put off or conducted remotely using video cameras. The initial court appearances, or arraignments, of people who have just been arrested with also be conducted by video in New York City.
The city’s Red Hook Community Court and the Midtown Community Court have been designated as arraignment sites for people at “medical risk” for coronavirus where they can appear remotely by video .
But it remained unclear how much court officials could do without action by the governor or the state legislature.
State law says people who are arrested on violent felony charges and held in jail must be indicted by a grand jury within six business days or the charges must be dismissed.
.
Similarly , the current law requires charges to be dismissed if the prosecutors don’t comply with speedy trial rules. The same holds true for the state’s recently enacted rules requiring prosecutors to turn over evidence against the accused within days of the first appearance.
(New York’s presidential primary could be delayed.
New York State’s presidential primary election could be moved from April (to June) , the date of another scheduled statewide primary, in response to the coronavirus outbreak, officials said on Sunday.
Two other states – Louisiana and Georgia
have already postponed their primaries and other states are debating similar delays and alternatives, including mail-in balloting measures to avoid large crowds in public.
Douglas A. Kellner, co-chairman of the New York State Board of Elections, confirmed on Sunday that discussions were underway about the possibility of delaying the primary to curb the spread of the virus. But he said that no final decision had been reached.
Matthew Haag, Jesse McKinley, Andy Newman, Eliza Shapiro and Tracey Tully contributed reporting.
Updated March ,
- How contagious is the virus? It seems to spread very easily from person to person, especially in homes, hospitals and other confined spaces. The pathogen can travel through the air, enveloped in tiny respiratory droplets that are produced when a sick person breathes, talks, coughs or sneezes.
- Where has the virus spread? The virus, which originated in Wuhan, China, (has sickened more than) , in at least (countries and more than 6,
- What symptoms should I look out for? Symptoms, which can take between (two to) days to appear
- How do I keep myself and others safe? (Washing your hands) Frequently is the most important thing you can do, along with staying at home when you’re sick and avoiding touching your face.
- How can I prepare for a possible outbreak? (Keep a) – day supply of essential medicines.
flu shot. Have essential household items on hand. Have a support system in place for elderly family members.
What if I’m traveling? (The State Department) has issued a global Level 3 health advisory telling United States citizens to “reconsider travel” to all countries because of the worldwide effects of the coronavirus. This is the department’s second-highest advisory.
How long will it take to develop a treatment or vaccine?
- What if I’m traveling? (The State Department) has issued a global Level 3 health advisory telling United States citizens to “reconsider travel” to all countries because of the worldwide effects of the coronavirus. This is the department’s second-highest advisory.
- How long will it take to develop a treatment or vaccine?
GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings