Combating the coronavirus is no walk in the park, and in one state residents will no longer be able to do just that.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy (D) announced in a tweet he will be closing state parks and forests and county parks.
“BREAKING: To further social distancing, I’m signing an Executive Order closing ALL: State parks and forests [and] County parks.” Murphy tweeted.
He added, “We’ve seen far too many instances in our parks where people are gathering and socializing in groups. We need to [flatten the curve].”
I do not take this action lightly. Some of my fondest memories with my own children are beautiful spring days in parks playing soccer and enjoying our family.
— Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy) April 7, 2020
But my focus, and my sole mission in life right now, is the health of every New Jersey family.
As of Tuesday afternoon, New Jersey reports at least 41,090 coronavirus cases with at least 1,005 deaths. New Jersey is the state with the second-most cases in the country, trailing behind New York.
New York has reported at least 138,836 coronavirus cases with 5,489 deaths.
Murphy is reportedly extending the public health emergency in effect by 30 days. He previously declared a state of emergency on March 9.
New Jersey’s neighbor New York has put into place several measures in an effort to mitigate the effects of the coronavirus. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) originally reported signs that the coronavirus curve was flattening in New York, as IJR previously reported.
Coronavirus deaths in New York then spiked by at least 731 on Monday, according to reports.
Cuomo announced he will be putting additional measures into place to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Among those include executive orders. One order would include fining residents for not following social distancing guidelines up to $1,000.
The number of coronavirus cases has reached at least 383,256 with more than 12,000 deaths in the U.S., as of Tuesday afternoon.