EGYZOOM ايجيزووم

Bay Area orders ‘shelter in place,’ only essential businesses open in 6 counties

Erin Allday March 16, 2020 Updated: March 16, 2020 8:27 p.m.

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Store manager Kathryn Sandretto closes clothing store Acoté after learning that six Bay Area counties would shelter in place.Photo: Gabrielle Lurie / The Chronicle

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Mayor London Breed announces that the Health Officer of the city and county of San Francisco has issued a public health order requiring that residents remain in place, with the exception being for essential needs only, in response to the heightened threat of the Coronavirus, during a press conference at City Hall in San Francisco, California, Photo: Michael Short / Special to The Chronicle

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A sign in a shop in Hayes Valley announces its closure due to the coronavirus.Photo: Gabrielle Lurie / The Chronicle

Six Bay Area counties announced “shelter in place” orders for all residents on Monday — the strictest measure of its kind yet in the continental United States — directing everyone to stay inside their homes and away from others as much as possible for the next three weeks in a desperate move to curb the rapid spread of coronavirus across the region.

The directive begins at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday and involves San Francisco, Santa Clara, San Mateo, Marin, Contra Costa and Alameda counties — a combined population of more than 6.7 million. It is to stay in place until at least April 7. The three other Bay Area counties — Sonoma, Solano and Napa — did not issue similar mandates.

Just outside the Bay Area, Santa Cruz County late Monday also announced a “shelter in place” order for its 275,000 residents.

The orders — which are all similarly worded — fall just short of a full lockdown, which would forbid people from leaving their homes without explicit permission. The orders (read San Francisco’s here in its entirety at tinyurl.com/waddyqv) call for county and city sheriffs or police chiefs to “ensure compliance,” and local authorities said they would not “rush to enforce” the directives as residents adjusted to understand what activities are no longer allowed. Violation of the orders is considered a misdemeanor punishable by a fine or jail time.

Businesses that do not provide “essential” services must send workers home. Among those remaining open are grocery stores, pharmacies, restaurants for delivery only and hardware stores. Most workers are ordered to stay home, with exceptions including health care workers; police, fire and other emergency responders; and utility providers such as electricians, plumbers and sanitation workers. BART will run for essential travel, and airports are not closing.

“We were seeing a tipping point here in Santa Clara County with exponential growth of our cases,” said Dr. Sara Cody, health officer for the county, at a news conference Monday. The county had 138 cases as of Monday — an increase of 72 since Friday. “Over the weekend, I had a discussion with fellow health officers in the Bay Area and we realized that we are one region, and that what’s happening in Santa Clara County today will soon be happening in the adjacent jurisdictions. We decided collectively we need to take swift action as soon as possible to prevent further spread.

“These orders were crafted with great thought and with great care,” Cody said. “They were also crafted very, very quickly.”

Coronavirus Outbreak

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  LOCAL

  BY DOMINIC FRACASSA