California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Monday ordered the shut down of bars and indoor dining statewide and directed churches, gyms, and hair salons to close in 30 counties as the state experiences a rise in Chinese coronavirus cases.
“We’ve made this point on multiple occasions and that is we’re moving back into a modification mode of our original stay-at-home order,” Newsom said in a press conference. “This continues to be a deadly disease.”
The order follows the governor directing such businesses to halt operations in counties on the state’s “monitoring list.” 31 counties are on the monitoring list, totaling approximately 80 percent of its population.
On Sunday, California reported 8,358 additional coronavirus cases and a 28 percent increase in hospitalizations in the past 14 days. The state has a total of 320,000 cases and over 7,000 fatalities.
Ahead of 4th of July weekend, Newsom directed multiple counties to shut down bars and indoor operations at restaurants and family entertainment businesses, including bowling alleys.
The development comes after California’s two largest school districts — Los Angeles and San Diego — announced that students will not return to the classroom when the fall semester begins in August.
The districts said in a joint statement Monday they will start the school year with online instruction only, but will plan for in-person learning as health conditions allow.
Los Angeles Unified, the nation’s second-largest district with about 730,00 students, begins instruction on Aug. 18.
San Diego Unified, which serves approximately 135,000 students, is set to start on Aug. 31.