Newark Mayor Wants People To 'Stay At Home' Because Of COVID-19

NEWARK, NJ — Newark's mayor asked residents to “stay at home” for a 10-day period over the Thanksgiving holiday as part of a renewed effort to battle a second wave of the coronavirus in New Jersey’s largest city.

According to Mayor Ras Baraka, a stay-at-home advisory will be in effect from Wednesday, Nov. 25 to Friday, Dec. 4.

In a COVID-19 update on Facebook earlier this week, Baraka asked all nonessential stores to close down, including barber shops/hair salons, gyms and workplaces.

Residents should go get a COVID-19 test, one of the only reasons they should be on the streets besides other essential tasks such as getting groceries, medicine or other necessary supplies, Baraka said.

Baraka also spoke about the need to stay at home and hunker down during an interview with WBGO’s “Newark Today” on Thursday, saying that he wants people to “shelter in place.”

For now, Newark city officials appear to be stopping short of a “lockdown,” such as the one that was held earlier this year at the onset of the pandemic. On Friday, a spokesperson for the mayor’s office told a reporter with PIX11 News that no 10-day lockdown order has been issued.

Last week, as case totals spiked in the city, officials rolled out a wave of COVID-19 crackdowns that included curfews for several residential neighborhoods. Other temporary crackdowns affected sports, large gatherings, visitation in senior housing, religious services and local businesses, who also face an evening curfew.

• See related article: Newark Puts Several Neighborhoods Under Coronavirus Curfews

On Friday and Saturday, Newark will close streets leading into the East Ward of the city near zip code 07105, one of several COVID-19 hotspots that are under curfew. Residents who live in the affected area will be allowed to travel for essential needs, officials said.

• See related article: Nighttime COVID Street Closures Planned For Newark's East Ward

This is a developing story. Patch reached out to Newark city officials seeking more information. We’ll update this article with any reply we receive.

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