October in Salem is going to look a little different this year.
Despite declining case numbers that may qualify the move into Step 2 of Phase III in the state’s reopening plan, the city of Salem has announced that it is remaining in Step 1 until at least early November out of extreme caution. The announcement comes as Salem moves into what is normally its busiest and most crowded month of the year.
“I’m glad that our Board of Health has taken these recent actions to slow the transmission of COVID-19 in our community during the October season and I fully support these decisions,” said Dominick Pangallo, Chief of Staff for Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll. “While our current case numbers and percent positive rate has been generally stable and low, with the larger number of visitors we see each October in Salem, I believe we must remain vigilant and cautious in how and when we reopen to these kinds of capacity levels and activities.”
To help reduce the spread of COVID-19 in the city during October, street performers and buskers should not congregate on the Essex Street Pedestrian Mall and adjacent areas. Salem has also canceled outdoor vendors from the Mall area for the month. Earlier this week, the city held a briefing for local businesses about COVID-19 restrictions and the October season. Those interested can listen to the briefing in the latest FYI Salem podcast, available at www.salem.com/fyisalempodcast.
Salem is maintaining the limit of no more than six people per table at restaurants. While the state has increased that number to 10, locally the number will remain at six for the month of October.
As of 7 p.m. on Oct. 1, there were 846 Salem residents who have tested positive for COVID-19, of which 193 cases are currently active. There have been 41 Salem residents who have died from the virus. Since the outbreak began, 756 Salem residents who had been infected by the virus have cleared their isolation period.
As of the Sept. 30 weekly report by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Salem’s case rate per 100,000 people was 0.6 percent more than the state’s case rate. Since the start of the pandemic, 24,618 tests have been conducted on Salem residents. The percentage of Salem residents testing positive for the two-week period of September 16-30, 2020 was 1.36 percent and the state’s positive percentage for the same period was 0.87 percent. As of September 30, 2020, Salem’s rolling 14-day average of new daily cases per 100,000 people is 5.2 per day and the state’s is 5.7 per day.
Additional data about COVID-19 cases in Salem, as well as daily case numbers, are posted in the weekly Local Data Dashboard at www.salem.com/covid, which can also be found by clicking the red “COVID-19 Information” banner on the City home page at www.salem.com.
Free COVID-19 testing in Salem through the state’s “Stop the Spread” program takes place at Salem High School — 77 Willson Street — as a walk-up or drive-through. No proof of insurance or citizenship is required, and you do not need to be symptomatic to receive this testing. Testing is offered Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. and Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Free COVID-19 testing will also take place at Palmer Cove in the Point neighborhood on Saturday, Oct. 3 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
“We know that broad-based community testing is essential to detecting COVID-19 and curbing its spread,” said Pangallo. “I’m very grateful that the Commonwealth has extended their ‘Stop the Spread’ testing through at least October 31 and we’re working to bring that testing downtown for our frontline workers and to our congregate and denser housing sites, to make it even more convenient and quick for as many people as possible to get tested.”
In other news around the city, the Salem Board of Health is in the process of instituting a local reporting form for travelers staying overnight in any Salem hotel, motel, inn, bed and breakfast, or short-term rental. Travelers from low-risk states will not be required to complete the form.
High Rock Church will hold another free community mask distribution event at the City parking lot at 297 Bridge Street on Sunday, October 4th from noon to 2:00 p.m.
The City of Salem’s ordinance prohibiting the use of disposable bags at businesses is once again in effect as of October 1. You can find the full details of the ordinance at www.salem.com/reusablebags.