By Joshua Huff, sports editor
MONTGOMERY – Despite an admission that community transmission of covid-19 continues to pose a problem throughout Alabama, Gov. Kay Ivey has amended her current safer-at-home order to include the reopening of businesses left out of her previous relaxed stay-at-home order.
The expansion of business reopenings throughout the state now include restaurants, bars, breweries, gyms, fitness centers, salons, barber shops, tattoo parlors and nail salons. The amended order also lifts the ban on group sizes of 10 or more people, which include church gatherings and all other non-work-related functions. Entertainment venues, such as night clubs, bowling alleys, arcades, concert venues, bingo halls, indoor children’s play areas, racetracks and theaters are to remain closed.
Also remaining closed are educational institutions.
“I’m banking on Alabamians to be responsible and rising to the occasion to provide personal responsibly to help us all fight this case,” Ivey said.
The new order is effective on Monday, May 11, 2020, and runs until May 22, 2020.
Restaurants and bars are to maintain a 50% occupancy rate with limited table seating and 6 feet of spacing between tables.
Gyms, fitness centers and other exercise-related facilities are to practice social distancing and proper hygiene. Employees must wear masks and occupancy must not exceed 50%. Patrons are not allowed to use showers, hot tubs, steam rooms, lockers, saunas and other recreational water or spa facilities.
Salons, tattoo parlors, nail salons and barber shops are to reopen with proper social distancing and hygiene in place.
“(State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris) and I are comfortable that we’ll be able to continued a measured approach,” Ivey said. “But let me be crystal clear to the people of Alabama, the threat of this disease continues to be active and it is deadly.”
As of Friday morning, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Alabama reached 9,048 while deaths in the state moved to 371.
There are 1,066 cases in Jefferson County with 57 deaths, 78 in St. Clair County with one death and 44 in Blount County. There have been 117,301 tests conducted in Alabama with 1,193 hospitalizations statewide since March 13, 2020. Alabama’s estimated 2019 population is 4,903,185.
“Today’s order will hopefully to begin providing another round of hope for all of us,” Ivey said.