BOSTON (AP) - Mayor Marty Walsh on Wednesday delayed the next step of Boston’s reopening, citing an increase in COVID-19 cases that he partly blamed on a growing number of house parties.
The city is on the cusp of reaching an infection rate that the state deems too high for further reopening, Walsh said. As a result, he said, Boston has decided not to join other cities moving to the next phase of reopening Monday.
That means that gyms, museums and libraries will remain limited to 40% of capacity and that indoor performance venues will stay closed, among other restrictions.
“We want to make sure that we stop the increase before it comes to a point where we’re having the entire city shut down again,” Walsh said at a news conference.
The city’s latest average infection rate is 3.5%, up from a previous average of 2.7%, he said. Rates in some neighborhoods have topped 7%.
Half the recent cases have been among people under age 29, Walsh said. He cited the city’s large number of universities as a factor but said rates are also rising among those not in college.
An increase in complaints about noisy parties suggests that house parties are to blame for some of the increase, he said.
“To anyone who’s hosting house parties, I’m urging you not to do it,” he said. “On Sunday when the Patriots are playing, we’re asking you not to have house parties; we’re asking you not to gather in large groups.”
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SCHOOL CASES
School officials in Bridgewater are warning that the district could be forced to move classes entirely online after 15 students tested positive for the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 in the past two weeks.
In a letter sent to parents Tuesday, the superintendent of the Bridgewater-Raynham Regional School District blamed students for spreading the virus at large social gatherings outside school. Superintendent Derek Swenson said none of the cases were the result of students’ exposure at school.
“Please know that should this trend continue, we may be forced into a fully remote learning situation, as early as next week,” he said.
Swenson urged parents to talk with their children about the health risks posed by large gatherings, adding that school officials “cannot fully ensure the health and wellbeing of our students & staff on our own.”
The district’s School Committee is planning to discuss the topic at its Wednesday meeting. State education officials urge districts to use remote learning if their areas have high virus rates for prolonged periods.
New state data released Wednesday showed Bridgewater averaging a daily case rate of 4 per 100,000 people. The state suggests that schools offer hybrid classes with only a portion of students coming to school in that rate range.
Another district, Amherst Regional Public Schools, said Wednesday that it was postponing the start of in-person schooling amid an increase in cases.
The Amherst district was scheduled to reopen Thursday but changed plans after 30 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed in the town since last week. In a letter to parents, Superintendent Michael Morris said the district would share information about a potential return this Friday.
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