Miami May Impose Shelter-In-Place Coronavirus Order, Mayor Says

MIAMI, FL — Speaking from his self-imposed quarantine, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said Friday the city may issue a shelter-in-place order for all nonessential travel by the end of the day to help stem the spread of the new coronavirus.

"We are considering that," the mayor told "The View" on ABC. "In fact, that may already be in place by the time that the day is over. We are certainly looking at that."

The mayor described the shelter-in-place order as similar to one imposed in San Francisco. He said he spoke with the San Francisco mayor.

"If you're not going to do something essential, if you're going to the supermarket, if you're going to get medicine, we understand," he said. "Those are essential things that you have to do. But other than that, you really should be staying home. And if you have to go out, you absolutely should respect social distancing."

Suarez, who has two young children, tested positive for the new coronavirus last week after spending time with the president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, and Fabio Wajngarten, the Brazilian president's press secretary. Wajngarten later tested positive for the illness.

"I was very surprised. I was probably one of the first, if not the first, elected official from any government that had contracted it," Suarez said. "It's been a whirlwind last few days dealing with it. But, thankfully, I've been relatively symptom-free — just a mild cold, no fever. I've been very blessed."

The mayor has posted a daily blog on Twitter and Instagram since he tested positive. "I want people to understand that if by some reason they get infected — and I suspect, by the way, there are many more people infected than we probably know — that this is not something you should panic about," the 42-year-old stressed. "I've remained in quarantine the entire time. But, thankfully, I fall in that category of people that have experienced, so far, mild symptoms."

U.S. Sen. Rick Scott of Florida and Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez also self-quarantined themselves after meeting Bolsonaro.

Earlier this week South Florida Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart became the first member of Congress to announce that he, too, tested positive for the new coronavirus, though it was not immediately clear how he was exposed.

Gimenez ordered all Miami-Dade beaches and nonessential retail and commercial businesses to shut down Thursday throughout the county, including the cities of Miami and Miami Beach, though the order does not apply to parks, beaches and recreational facilities operated by the state or federal government.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has said Miami-Dade and nearby Broward County were at the "epicenter" of Florida's growing number of cases.

Suarez said he was in the same room with the Brazilian press secretary for at least an hour on each of two days.

"It's very possible that we shook hands," the mayor said. "It's very possible that we had a close conversation. Someone sent me a picture that we're in the same picture a few feet away."

He said he felt anxiety when he learned that he had tested positive.