Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm could reopen on limited capacity next month if Orange County goes to the Red Tier over state reopening guidelines, following a sudden announcement by government officials.
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At a hastily scheduled news conference on Friday afternoon, Secretary of State for Health and Human Services, Dr. Mark Ghaly, said that provinces in the Red Tier will be allowed to reopen theme parks with 15% capacity and sports parks at 20% in April. 1.
This means that Angel Stadium can reopen as well.
“This includes all theme parks in California, and indeed your country needs to be in the red level to start 15% at amusement parks,” Ghaly said. “If it’s orange and yellow, then these requirements shift some, including capacity.”
Theme parks are open to California residents only and may not offer indoor dining. Outdoor rides will also be restricted, based on space and ride length, officials said.
Theme parks have been closed for nearly a year and Anaheim’s Disneyland resort area was mostly quiet, as the city has a $ 114 million deficit.
That Red Tier could be reached sooner after another series of sudden changes to the reopening statistics on Thursday.
To be able to move to the Red Tier, provinces must have less than seven new cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
Orange County is sitting on the edge, with 7.6 new cases per 100,000 residents.
But the measure is expected to ease to 10 cases per 100,000 people after Golden State provinces vaccinate more people in the communities most affected.
OC health official Dr Clayton Chau expects the province to hit the Red Tier in a few weeks.
“I am confident and hopeful that we will be officially in the Red Tier on Wednesday 3/17,” Chau said in a Friday text message following the announcement of the theme park.
Dee Dee Myers, an assistant to Gavin Newsom, gave no specific ways to prevent parks from moving state residents through the system.
“It’s our hope that people will respect the guidelines, and it’s our expectation that the parks will work to really encourage people from California to come and others not to come,” Myers said. “Just by reducing the mix and by reducing the geography of where people come from, we think there is a reduction in overall risk. ‘
Friday’s sudden changes to the theme park’s guide follow a series of sudden updates – from reopening criteria to reopening the school – as Newsom is likely to face a re-election.
Meanwhile, hospitalizations are still declining.
According to the country’s health care agency, 339 people were admitted to hospital on Friday, including 91 in intensive care units.
This is the lowest hospitalization since mid-November, when new cases began to increase rapidly and people increasingly went to emergencies.
But deaths are still rising.
The virus has now killed 4,075 people, including 62 newly reported deaths on Friday.
This is more than seven times the number of people who kill the flu annually in OC.
Orange County has averaged about 20,000 deaths a year since 2016, including 543 annual flu deaths, according to state health data.
It has also killed more than annual heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease and strokes, respectively.
According to the state’s death statistics, cancer kills more than 4,600 people, and heart disease dies
2800, more than 1400 die of Alzheimer’s disease and strokes kill more than 1,300 people.
According to the latest available state data, Orange County exceeded its annual average of 20,000 deaths, with 23,883 people in December.
Here is the latest information on virus numbers in Orange County:
Infections | Hospitalizations and deaths | City-by-city data | Demographics
Spencer Custodio is a reporter for Voice of OC. You can contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerCustodio
Noah Biesiada is a voice of OC reporter. Contact him at [email protected] or on Twitter @NBiesiada.
Reporter Nick Gerda contributed to this story.