City Of Hermosa Beach Coronavirus Update For November 25

Press release from the City of Hermosa Beach:

November 25, 2020

To help keep the community informed, the City of Hermosa Beach is providing regular updates featuring the latest news about COVID-19; related local updates; and how the City is working to meet the needs of the community and protect public health.

We are issuing the COVID-19 Update early this week because of the holiday tomorrow and the importance of getting these messages to the community.

Thanksgiving Guidance Changed: The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health is asking everyone to rethink their Thanksgiving plans because of the dangerous surge in COVID-19 cases. The Department on Tuesday issued a statement asking County residents and visitors to limit Thanksgiving celebrations to immediate household members and gather online with other friends and family to avoid spreading the virus. The Department said people should not plan, host or attend holiday gatherings for multiple households. Its earlier recommendations were to meet outside with no more than 15 people from no more than 3 households and to limit the time together to 2 hours or less.

In-Person Dining Temporarily Suspended Starting Tonight: The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health’s reporting of record numbers of new COVID-19 diagnoses in recent days led to an amended Public Health Order that goes into effect at 10 p.m. today. The order seeks to reduce the possibility for crowding and the potential for exposures in settings where people are not wearing their face coverings.

It eliminates all in-person dining at restaurants, breweries, wineries and bars in Los Angeles County. That includes Hermosa Beach restaurants, breweries and bars.

Restaurants, breweries and bars will only be able to offer take-out, drive thru and delivery services. Wineries and breweries may continue their retail operations by adhering to current protocols. In-person dining will not be allowed for at least the next 3 weeks.

Pasadena has its own health department, so it has chosen to keep its outdoor dining open at this time. But it also said it is continuing to closely monitor the data and may re-consider this decision. Hermosa Beach does not have its own health department, and local businesses rely on licenses from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health to operate. That means Hermosa Beach’s businesses risk citation or revocation of licenses from Public Health if they choose to ignore the Public Health Orders.

The City is urging residents and visitors, who have the means, to support local restaurants by ordering food to go or for delivery. They may also consider purchasing gift cards to help the restaurants pay their staff.

The City of Hermosa Beach is also asking the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to make financial aid available to small businesses from the CARES Act funding they have received from the federal government. The City will share that information with local businesses and information about any funding that becomes available for them.

Additional Health Order Changes Expected As Cases and Hospitalizations Rise: Los Angeles County Department of Public Health officials, speaking at the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, said that another Safer at Home Order is being considered because the County has surged past a five-day average of 4,500 new COVID-19 cases per day in just one week. While they have not issued the modified Safer at Home Order yet, the officials said the modifications may include closing outdoor playgrounds again – which have been important to Hermosa Beach’s families with young children. They also discussed including the following:

• Limiting gatherings to people within the same household. The County is proposing exceptions for outdoor church services and outdoor protests, where masks will continue to be required at all times. Currently, small gatherings are allowed outdoors, but capped at up to 15 people with no more than 3 households.
• A reduction in occupancy of essential retail stores to 35% of capacity; for grocery stores, that would be a reduction from the current cap of 50% capacity.
• A reduction in capacity at nonessential retail stores and libraries to 20%. Current orders allow up to 25% of capacity.
• Beaches, trails and parks would remain open, as would outdoor venues like golf courses, tennis courts, skate parks and community gardens.
• Child-care and day care, schools and day camps operating under current protocols would remain open with one new requirement: an ordered closure for 14 days should an outbreak occur, which is defined as 3 or more cases over a 2-week period.
• Professional sports without spectators and outdoor youth sports for conditioning and skill building only can continue; tournaments and competitions have not been allowed to resume.
• People would still need to abide by the state’s limited overnight stay-at-home order, which says nonessential activities outside the home with members of other households must end between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.

COVID-19 Precautions Continue to be Important: Public health officials are saying the best way to support our businesses and school reopenings is for everyone take immediate action and personally commit to diligently follow the public health precautions, which include:

• Wearing a face covering every time you leave home
• Avoiding gathering with people and avoid non-essential trips outside your homes
• Staying home when you are ill or if you have been exposed to COVID-19
• Getting your flu immunization
• Washing your hands frequently
• Quarantining for 14 days if you have been in crowds of people without face coverings or engaged in other risky behaviors

Los Angeles County Update: The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health on Tuesday reported 51 new deaths and 3,692 new cases of COVID-19. This is the highest number of deaths reported since September 9.

The Department said that COVID-19 hospitalizations continue to accelerate at alarming speed. There are 1,575 people with COVID-19 currently hospitalized and 26% of these people are in the ICU. Just two weeks ago, there were 888 people with COVID-19 hospitalized.

The Department said that the increases in cases and hospitalizations must slow to avoid overwhelming hospitals and healthcare staff, and save lives. Anytime a person removes their mask and interacts in close distance with others not in their household, even outdoors, they risk either infecting another person with COVID-19 or becoming infected themselves. The longer that interaction, the higher the risk of COVID-19 spread.

The Department said that it is critical that everyone follow the simple public health safety measures that provide protection from COVID-19 and minimize spreading it to friends and family. Staying home as much as possible, always wearing face covering securely over your nose and mouth when out and avoiding being near anyone not in your household are the simple actions that slow the spread of COVID-19. The Department urges residents to connect virtually with friends and family members you do not live with.

Testing results are available for more than 3,600,000 individuals with 10% of all people testing positive. The cumulative positivity rate has increased. The cumulative positivity rate remained 9% over many weeks.

To date, Public Health identified 374,134 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County and a total of 7,497 deaths. Upon further investigation, 194 cases reported earlier were not L.A. County residents.

Latest Facts and Figures (Tuesday Reports)

Jurisdiction - Reported Cases | Reported Deaths

• Hermosa Beach - 327 | 4
• L.A. County - 374,134 | 7,497
• California - 1,144,049 | 18,8875
• United States - 12,498,734 | 259,005

*All reported data is from the close of the previous day.

Additional Resources

Please continue to follow public health experts’ recommendations to avoid spreading the coronavirus including frequent handwashing, wearing a face covering, keeping a safe distance from one another, and staying home if you are ill. Public Health has issued the following guidance during this time of increased spread: If you are mildly sick, stay home for at least seven days or until 72 hours after being fever free, whichever is longer. Call your doctor if you are concerned and/or your symptoms worsen. Individuals who are elderly, have underlying health conditions or pregnant should consider contacting their providers earlier when they are sick. More information is available here.

We are monitoring updates and sharing information about the coronavirus from trusted sources including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, California Department of Public Health, and Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

Information regarding coronavirus is changing frequently, and the City will provide the latest information about COVID-19 and links to resources on our website. To stay informed, please sign up for Hermosa Beach eNotifications, public safety alerts or follow the City on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

This press release was produced by the City of Hermosa Beach. The views expressed are the author's own.