Source: Department of Public Health
The province and city of Santa Barbara remind community members and visitors that Local Health Manager Order 2020-12.5 prohibits meetings of any size due to increased disease transmission of COVID-19. A meeting is defined as any event or gathering that brings people together in one room or one room or one indoor or outdoor space; limited exceptions apply. Santa Barbara County remains on the State’s Monitoring List due to the persistently high target positivity rates.
The Sunday Cruiser Ride is a tradition of Santa Barbara every year in Fiesta, but can not occur this year without bringing the community into the limelight with the spread of COVID-19. Provincial and city officials are urging people who may have been planning to take part in this trip to cancel their community safety plans. If community members are aware of others who plan to participate, please share this message with them.
Risk of contracting COVID-19 increases significantly in crowded places and with close contact with others. “Large cycles, although outside, pose a significant risk for the transmission of COVID-19,” shared Dr. Henning Ansorg, health manager for Santa Barbara County. “Events like this, start and end with meetings of people in close contact and can result in the transmission of COVID-19 by individuals who are not symptomatic but are actually contagious. These encounters pose a high risk for accelerated and widespread coronavirus infections and are therefore prohibited by order of a healthcare professional. ”
To prevent the spread of the virus, the community is encouraged to gather for Fiesta celebrations and activities, instead of finding safe ways to participate in virtual music and dance offerings at https://www.sbfiesta.org/.
For more information on the local COVID-19 response, visit www.publichealthsbc.org or call the County Call Center at 1 (833) 688-5551.
