Monroe County and Mayor Heather Carruthers declared a State of Local Emergency at 5 p.m. today due to the rapid acceleration of COVID-19 across the state of Florida and particularly South Florida. The declaration includes “Coronavirus poses a health risk to Monroe County residents, particularly elderly residents” and “the threat posed by Coronavirus may require extraordinary and immediate actions by Monroe County in order to protect the public health, safety, and welfare of county residents and visitors.”
The State of Local Emergency opens the county up to additional resources and funding to combat the impacts of the epidemic.
The primary protective action the County is taking at this time is a social distancing rule. There will be no gatherings on County property of 250 or more people, and Emergency Management encourages all businesses and organizers to limit mass gatherings of 250 or more people through at least March 22, 2020. Right now, the recommendations and actions will continue in week-by-week increments and can be canceled at any time. This is issued for the next seven days, but it is expected to be renewed through the next 14 days.
“As much as I hate it, we need to try to avoid any areas where people will be in close proximity to others,” said Heather Carruthers, Monroe County Mayor. “For these critical weeks, it is highly recommended that for your safety and the safety of others and to help us ‘flatten the curve,’ you avoid crowds and keep at least 6 feet away from others.”
Carruthers added that this is not a good time for anyone to be traveling. “We understand the importance of tourism to our economy and are working to balance our primary responsibility to protect public health and safety with the realities of life for so many in the Florida Keys.”
