Around Brick: Schools Delay Next In-Person Phase As COVID Rises

BRICK, NJ — The surge in coronavirus cases and hospitalizations around the state and in Ocean County is having an impact in Brick, as the school district has postponed for two weeks its plans to shift to four days a week of in-person instruction.

Kindergarten through fifth-graders had been scheduled to start the four half-days of instruction starting Nov. 16, but that has been delayed to Nov. 30. Middle school and high school students, meanwhile, are anticipated to move to four days a week after winter break, Superintendent Thomas Farrell said. Read more: Brick Schools Delay Shift To 4 Days In Person Amid COVID Spike

That delay was just one of the changes that have happened in the last week in Brick as a result of the continuing rise in the number of coronavirus cases in New Jersey and in Ocean County. The state has 279,274 cases as of Sunday, an increase of more than 24,000 since Nov. 8. It's not just the number of cases that has officials concerned; hospitalizations have risen 30 percent, from 1,538 on Nov. 8 to 2,004 as of Sunday.

Ocean County's health department announced 172 new ones on Saturday, giving Ocean a cumulative total of 18,621 cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began in March. That number is up more than 1,000 since Nov. 8. Of those, 5,290 people have been hospitalized, and there have been 1,021 people who have died, an increase of 10 deaths from Nov. 8, according to the Ocean County Health Department. There are 527 people hospitalized as of Sunday in the Central region of the state, which includes Hunterdon, Somerset, Middlesex, Mercer, Monmouth and Ocean counites, according to the state health department.

Brick Township added nearly 150 cases since Nov. 8, rising from 1,796 to 1,944 cases as of Sunday, according to the county health department. There have been 149 Brick residents who have died, but none since at least Oct. 28.

Murphy has taken some steps to contain the virus's spread, imposing a 10 p.m. indoor curfew at bars and restaurants and eliminating bar seating. Murphy also signed an order allowing communities to establish a curfew as early as 8 p.m. Read more: Gov. Murphy Clarifies Rules For NJ Indoor Dining, Bars, Barbers

Those new restrictions will make an already difficult situation worse for Brick restaurants, managers said. Read more: 'A Cost We Can't Recover:' New Restrictions Hurt, Brick Bars Say

The restrictions on interstate sports competition, particularly ice hockey, also drew a rebuke from Mayor John G. Ducey, who said the cluster of outbreaks related to youth hockey may be caused in part by parents standing around outside talking (and not necessarily socially distancing) instead of being able to watch their kids play. Read more: Interstate Youth Hockey Ban For COVID Ignores Cause: Brick Mayor

Brick Township officials honored veterans on Wednesday with a ceremony at the war memorial in front of the municipal building. Photos from the event are posted on the township's Facebook page.

The township council approved an ordinance banning short-term rentals in the township of less than 30 days, with an exemption for summer rentals on the barrier island. Read more: Brick Council Approves Ban On Short-Term Home Rentals

Other news:

Retired Brick Police Officer Loses Home To Fire: A retired Brick Township police officer has been left to pick up the pieces after a fire in Leisure Village East destroyed his home on Saturday, the officer's family says. You can help. Read more.

The Brick Township Board of Education election results have not yet been finalized. The Ocean County Board of Elections, which had employees test positive for the coronavirus, expects to finalize and certify the results by the deadline of Friday. Read more: 16 Ocean County Workers Test Positive For COVID-19: Official

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