Oct. 1, 2020 3:00p; Updated at 4:15 with Trump rally switch
(WGTD/AP)---In the face of a surge in COVID-19 cases, Gov. Evers is asking state residents to do the kinds of things they did under last spring’s ‘Safer at Home’ order: Cancel dinner parties and play dates, revert to take-out, avoid crowds, limit shopping, and in general, stay at home as much as possible.
“We can’t live like we’re back to the way things used to be,” Evers said during a briefing for reporters Thursday. “We have to get back to the basics in fighting the virus,” he said.
The state set another record Thursday for daily positives, with a 2,887 increase from the day before. 21 additional deaths were reported. Hospitals in the Green Bay area in particular are said to be reaching capacity.
COVID activity in the WGTD listening area—Kenosha, Racine and Walworth counties—is high, according to state benchmarks, but not as high as in many other counties, which received a “very high” rating this week.
The number of new cases in Kenosha County Thursday was 22. 85 new cases were reported in Racine County, which just ended three days’ worth of National Guard testing at Festival Hall. 16 new cases were reported in Walworth County.
Evers said Thursday that if the state Supreme Court hadn’t invalidated his ‘Safer at Home’ order back in May he’d consider fashioning another one of some sort. As it is, Evers’ statewide mask mandate is currently being challenged.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump moved a campaign rally scheduled for LaCrosse on Saturday to Janesville. Both Gov. Evers and the mayor of LaCrosse, both Democrats, urged Tump not to come because of the virus.
But the manager of LaCrosse's airport said the switch was because the airport's lease didn't allow for such an event to be held there.
A Trump rally scheduled for the same day in Green Bay still appears to be on.
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