For months, San Mateo County has been a haven in the midst of some of California’s most infected counties, registering the lowest rate of coronavirus cases and hospitalizations, earning the latest distinction of being the only place to cut off the hair indoors. the gym or escape other restrictions in the bay area.
Due in large part to its highly suburban and wealthy communities, the number of cases in the county increased by just over 1,000 from 1,036 to 2,304 from April 1 to June 1.
But since then, the number of cases increased to a total of 4,551 as of Sunday, compared to nearby counties with much higher numbers: 5,305 in San Francisco and 7,795 in Santa Clara County. The new cases come just a week after California began marking grim milestones in hospitalizations and coronavirus cases, prompting public officials to renew restrictions on social gatherings in an effort to stop the spread.
San Mateo County Health Officer Scott Morrow said in a statement Monday that while he understood that people are frustrated at having to take precautions, “you cannot let your guard down, or be careless, not even once. especially if you are at high risk. ” . “
“Why is the virus spreading here at its current highest level now? I don’t know exactly, but it seems to me that there are three main factors, ”said Morrow, which included lack of precautions, the structure of the US economy and complacency. “We don’t have the means to do case-control studies given the huge burden on all health department staff at the moment, but we can make some educated guesses based on the patterns we’re seeing here.”
Keep in mind that your seemingly innocuous meetings are driving the spread and are one of the main reasons why you can’t go to a restaurant, why you can’t go to the gym, why you can’t cut your hair, why kids they can’t go to school, “Morrow said.
Although San Mateo County has managed to stay off Newsom’s watch list, which has been growing rapidly and now includes more than 30 cities, including all Bay Area counties, supervisor David Canepa said he hopes it will be impose new restrictions this week.
During an interview Monday, Canepa said in his district, which covers most of the city of Daly, that people continue to work in service jobs across the peninsula.
For them, Canepa said, losing more income after suffering a large financial loss at the start of the pandemic is likely to force people to hide or increase the county’s unemployment rate, which already stands at 10.8 percent.
“We are headed for refuge 2.0,” said Canepa. “I think we were able to stop it for a while, but as I’ve said many times, this virus doesn’t know the county lines and my heart breaks for kitchen workers, small business owners, and people who are just trying to give a haircut because they’re going to face the worst part of this. “
According to San Mateo County figures, the county’s case rate of 110.4 cases per 100,000 people as of Friday may exceed the state benchmark of 100 per 100,000 residents, and if kept that way, it could finally Be on the state watch list. Counties are placed on the state watch list if they are not below 100 for three days in a row. Around the Bay Area, the case rate is approximately 124 per 100,000 and in California in general it is approximately 224.1.
Local officials also closely monitor the three-day average of COVID-19 patients in San Mateo County hospitals. As of Friday, it was 12.1 percent, higher than the state variability benchmark of 10 percent.
But while the county appears to meet the requirements to renew the restrictions, Canepa said he believes “there should be more conversation with the state before it is automatically included on the watchlist.”
For a time, it seemed that the northern Italian restaurant Pranzi in San Carlos had returned to normal when in June the county allowed him to return to dinner in person with restrictions on social distancing.
But just two days after Governor Newsom announced on July 13 that all interior dining rooms must be closed immediately, General Manager Sedric Gun had to cut two of his employees and two kitchen workers. If the county closes again and more people stay home, eating outside won’t be enough to keep Pranzi back to the standards it had before the pandemic.
“We had to let them go immediately because we can’t afford to pay them,” Gun said. “The restaurant doesn’t make enough money. 80 percent of our business goes down the drain if we remove the food inside. You pay at least your rent, but that’s all. “
Gun said he could close the restaurant for a couple of months, but people “won’t come back to you anymore if you leave.” Forced to stay open with limited returns, Gun resigns himself to close again if necessary.
“We are all in the same boat,” Gun said. “If it is good for our community, then it is good for me.”
Caring for several clients on Monday, the owner of Daly City’s Black and Gold Barber Lounge, 34-year-old Derrick Pecson, was with his barber friend JJ Tupas.
Pecson said Tupas had to close its own Cut to Contrast barber shop in San Francisco’s Ingleside Terraces neighborhood on Friday after Mayor London Breed announced new restrictions last week and the county was placed on the governor’s watch list.
“Now he’s here with me to take care of his clients because he can’t open his own store, so I gave him one of my chairs here,” said Pecson. “He’s trying to get through it day by day, especially with all the new orders coming out all the time.”
But for Pecson, any income is better than no income.
“For us, we did a great cut,” said Pecson, noting that before the pandemic, 15 to 20 haircuts were made per day. “Now it comes down to around 8 haircuts or 10. If we close again, well, desperate times require desperate measures.” People will do what they have to do to survive. “
