City Of Hermosa Beach Coronavirus Update For September 3, 2020

Press release from the City of Hermosa Beach:

September 3, 2020

To help keep the community informed, the City of Hermosa Beach is providing regular updates featuring the latest news about COVID-19; related local updates; and how the City is working to meet the needs of the community and protect public health.

As Labor Day Weekend Approaches, COVID-19 Precautions Remain Necessary: Temperatures are expected to heat up across the region this Labor Day weekend, which is likely to draw more people to the coast. The beach will remain open for the three-day weekend, and the City of Hermosa Beach and L.A. County Public Health officials are asking everyone to take extra precautions to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 and avoid similar spikes in cases observed following other holiday weekends this summer. For information about what is permitted at the beach, please see L.A. County Beaches and Harbors beach rules for the weekend. Additional COVID-19 precautions include:

• Avoiding crowded areas and gatherings with those outside of your household. Be flexible and willing to change your plans if you find yourself on a crowded beach, park, or trail.
• Wearing a face covering over the nose and mouth when outside of your home. Masks are required to be worn at all times when Downtown, Pier Plaza, the Strand, Greenbelt and all City parks. Failure to wear a face covering in these areas is subject to fines starting at $100 for a first offense, $200 for a second offense, and $500 for each subsequent offense. For more information, please see the City’s Face Covering Guidance.
• Practicing social distancing, avoiding confined spaces, washing hands frequently and staying home as much as possible.
• If you are sick (or have been exposed to someone positive for COVID-19), please isolate or quarantine as appropriate.

Additional Labor Day Reminders and changes to city services due to the holiday are provided on the City’s website.

County Approves Limited On-Campus School Operations and Indoor Hair Salon Operations: The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health), in consultation with the Board of Supervisors, announced on Wednesday that it has revised the Health Officer Order to allow for limited, on-campus operation for schools in L.A. County, as well as limited indoor operations of hair salons and barbershops. This Order went into effect Wednesday, Sept. 2.

Effective immediately, hair salons and barbershops can re-open for indoor services at 25% of their indoor occupancy provided they are in full compliance with the Health Officer’s protocols for hair salons and barbershops. The Order encourages these businesses to continue outdoor operations when possible, and to offer indoor operations for those services that cannot be provided outdoors.

Beginning Monday, September 14, schools K-12 may offer in-school services for small cohorts of students with Individualized Education Plans (IEP), students requiring instruction for English as a Second Language (ESL) or students needing assessments or specialized in-school services, as long as the school is able to fully implement the Health Officer’s re-opening protocols. Public Health will not be opening the waiver program for instruction of students in grades TK-6 as the department monitors the implementation of this effort to safely get students needing specialized in-school services back to school. Following are the updated school-related protocols:

• Appendix T1: Reopening Protocol for K-12 Schools
• Appendix T2: Protocol for COVID-19 Exposure Management Plan in K-12 Schools

COVID-19 Testing Sites Labor Day Schedules: The South Bay’s testing site at Beach Cities Health District, 514 N. Prospect Ave., Redondo Beach, CA 90277, is scheduled to be open on Labor Day, which is Monday. But several other testing sites in L.A. County will be closed. Here’s the list of testing sites and the holiday schedules:

• All State-operated testing sites will be closed on Monday
• All L.A. City-operated testing sites will be closed on Sunday and MondaySelect L.A. County–operated testing sites will be closed on Monday. They are:

• Bellflower City Hall
• East L.A. College
• The Forum
• MLK Medical Campus
• Montebello Civic Center

The following L.A. County-operated testing sites will be open on Monday and some have adjusted their hours:

• College of the Canyons - 26455 Rockwell Canyon Rd., Santa Clarita, CA 91355
• Downey - Rancho Los Amigos South Campus - 12840 Dahlia Ave., Downey, CA 90242
• Palmdale Hammack Center - 815 E Avenue Q6, Palmdale CA 93550
• Panorama City - 14665 Roscoe Blvd. Panorama City, CA 91402
• Pomona Fairplex Gate 17 - 1101 W. McKinley Ave. Pomona, CA 91768
• San Gabriel Valley Airport - 4233 Santa Anita Ave., El Monte, CA 91731
• South Gate Park - 9615 Pinehurst Ave, South Gate, CA 90280

Testing is now widely available within the provider community. Residents who have a regular source of care should first seek testing from their healthcare provider if they are symptomatic or have a known positive exposure. Those without a regular provider can call the County’s 2-1-1 information line for assistance.

Appointments at testing sites are required. L.A. County residents who would like to make an appointment or check for availability at testing sites offered in the County, including select CVS, Rite-Aid and other community-based testing sites should visit the COVID-19 testing website or call 2-1-1.

L.A. County Public Health Highlights The Importance of Worker Protections and Reporting Workplace Outbreaks of COVID-19: The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health today reported 61 new deaths and 1,193 new cases of COVID-19. Public Health also aims to highlight the importance of supporting worksites experiencing outbreaks, as they are a crucial part of slowing the spread of COVID-19 and protecting the health of communities. Businesses must follow the critical infection control protocols in place to decrease the risk of transmission in their workplace. For Public Health to help determine and manage an outbreak within a workplace and to identify close contacts in the community, businesses must notify the department as soon as possible. Public Health is relying on business operators, employers, and workers to report clusters of cases as soon as these are recognized. If a workplace has at least three reported or confirmed COVID-19 cases in the workplace within 14 days, employers are required to call Public Health immediately at: 888-397-3993.

In addition, workers and employers can anonymously report COVID-19 outbreaks at worksites as well as violations of Health Officer Orders and Protocols. They can call the Environmental Health Customer Call Center at 888-700-9995, Monday - Friday from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., excluding holidays. A complaint system to report violations is also available online.

To date, Public Health has identified 244,999 positive cases of COVID-19 across all areas of L.A. County and a total of 5,932 deaths. The Department also reported 4 additional COVID-19 cases in Hermosa Beach since the City’s last update this past Monday, bringing the City’s total to 194 COVID-19 diagnoses and a total of 4 COVID-19 related deaths since the start of the pandemic.

Global Coronavirus Figures: There are over 26 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 worldwide since the start of the pandemic, and more than 865,132 COVID-19 related deaths have occurred across the globe as of September 3, according to Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center.

This press release was produced by the City of Hermosa Beach. The views expressed are the author's own.