Contra Costa county is the latest to restrict gatherings of 100 people or more, joining other Bay Area cities and counties in enforcing the same rules to help curb the spread of the coronavirus.
This ban includes indoor and outdoor events.
Contra Costa County health officer Dr. Ori Tzvieli says the county wouldn’t be asking the public to make these changes if it weren’t very important.
“This order is not intended to be punitive,” Dr. Tzvieli said. “The health officer’s goal is to establish the critical need to reduce the spread of COVID-19 by increasing social distancing.”
Tzvieli said another goal is to limit any impact of the county’s hospitals and other health care facilities.
The health chief says the county has one of the highest numbers of coronavirus cases in the entire Bay Area, with 25 confirmed cases so far.
The order has since forced the cancelation of church services.
What would normally be a very busy time at St. Ignatius church in Antioch has turned into a quiet lent for Pastor Father Robert Ryan, who said they usually pack the church for all three services during the weekends.
The church had planned on proceeding with services on Sunday, but then it got the order from the county.
“We need to be sure we protect them at all costs,” Father Ryan told KCBS Radio. “Very few people have come physically here, I think they’ve all gotten the message and out of a sense of their own health and well-being, they’re protecting themselves from going out publicly.”
St. Ignatius plans on streaming their 10:00 a.m. services on their Facebook page.
Written by Mallory Somera
