Coronavirus Update: Police Break Up Party In New Jersey For Ignoring Social Distancing
TRENTON, N.J. (CBSNewYork) – New Jersey's number of confirmed coronavirus cases broke the five-digit mark Saturday.
Gov. Phil Murphy said 11,124 patients have tested positive, and 140 have died.
"One hundred and forty invaluable, precious, un-expendable souls who are no longer with us in the Garden State because of this virus," Murphy said.
As the cases keep climbing, so does the push for social distancing.
The governor said "this is life and death" and shared an example of "something not to do."
"We are not going to be shy about naming and shaming those who can't get this message into their heads," he said. "Last night, right here in Mercer County, Ewing Township Police broke up a party with 47 people, including a DJ, crammed into a 550 square foot apartment. The organizer was charged, as they should have been and deserved to be."
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In some positive news, Murphy said the state reached a deal with several banks to offer a 90-day grace period on mortgages. He also suspended all evictions for at least 60 days.
"Under my executive order, your landlord cannot kick you out of your home during this emergency, period," he said. "For any landlord who is getting mortgage relief today, we expect you will in turn provide similar relief to your tenants…. Now is the time to show some compassion and to work with your renters to ensure that they stay safe and in their homes."
The governor signed an executive order requiring medical facilities to send daily reports about their capacities and supplies.
"This will allow us to more efficiently and effectively manage the flow of PPE (personal protective equipment), and to have the most up-to-date data possible regarding our bed capacity," he said.
CORONAVIRUS: NY Health Dept. | NY Call 1-(888)-364-3065 | NYC Health Dept. | NYC Call 311, Text COVID to 692692 | NJ COVID-19 Info Hub | NJ Call 1-(800)-222-1222 or 211, Text NJCOVID to 898211 | CT Health Dept. | CT Call 211 | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Murphy said the state has received some, but not all, of the equipment it needs from the federal stockpile.
Last night a shipment arrived with 121,000 N95 masks, 287,000 surgical masks, more than 62,000 face shields, over 51,000 surgical gloves, more than 3,500 coveralls, 368,000 pairs of gloves and 1,000 medical beds.
"I won't stop burning up the phone lines to the White House until we get all the we need," he said.
The governor spoke with President Donald Trump on Friday and received approval to deploy the New Jersey National Guard as necessary.
He said they did not discuss the possibility of quarantining the region.
"There's no question the greater New York Metropolitan Area is the No. 1 hot spot in America right now. It's not the only hot spot but it's the No. 1 in terms of number of cases. he replied. "Until further notified, we're going to keep doing exactly what we're doing, because we believe the data and the facts are on our side in terms of this aggressive – as aggressive as any American state right now in terms of social distancing and flattening the curve."
Murphy and encouraged residents to visit the state's online information hub for the latest updates about the pandemic, unemployment resources, guidance for businesses and health care professionals and other resources.
