Gov. Tate Reeves has added Lowndes County to a list of counties under state-ordered mask mandates and other restrictions aimed to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Under Executive Order 1515, citizens in Lowndes and more than 40 other Mississippi counties are required to wear masks in public and limiting gatherings to 10 or fewer people indoors and 20 or fewer people outdoors, according to press releases from Reeves’ office.
Initially Reeves issued the order for 13 counties with higher-than-average rates of the virus earlier this month. He has gradually added counties to the list depending on its increasing case numbers.
On Monday, Lowndes County Board of Supervisors called an emergency meeting and voted to request Reeves add Lowndes County to the list.
“We are throwing everything that we can at the hospital crisis in our state, and we are going to continue working to ensure the integrity of our health care system,” Reeves said Thursday when he announced Lowndes and seven other counties would be added to the list. “I want to underscore again: Even if you do not personally fear coronavirus, the overwhelming of the system affects everybody. If you get in a car wreck, you don’t want to be treated in a tent like we saw in other parts of the country. You want to get the best possible care.”
The order will end on Aug. 17 unless Reeves’ office extends it.
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