Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
Citing a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases statewide, New Mexico's governor said Thursday she wouldn't update the state's public health order regarding high-school sports, thus effectively delaying all fall games until 2021.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham also said the state was “at extreme risk of uncontrolled spread” of the disease and feared a rollback of restrictions next week, including imposing a curfew, if the coronavirus caseload didn't show signs of stability.
The New Mexico Activities Association announced Wednesday the fall season's first prep sports events scheduled for Saturday were canceled because Lujan Grisham hadn't signed off on it. The cancellations affected home volleyball games at Logan and San Jon and Tucumcari road game at Pecos. A Tucumcari girls and boys cross-country meet scheduled at Mora also was canceled.
Logan Municipal Schools texted shortly after the governor's announcement Thursday that volleyball season would be rescheduled for March and April. The Lady Longhorns are the defending Class 1A champions.
Lujan Grisham said she couldn't allow those sports events because travel required with them made the risk of spreading COVID-19 too high.
“It's a huge disappointment,” she said. “We cannot afford these additional health risks.”
Lujan Grisham said all teams would be allowed to continue workouts in 10-to-1 player-to-coach ratios if masks were worn.
She said she delayed sports to ensure more students could remain in public school classrooms.
The governor and Human Services Secretary David Scrase said New Mexico's virus numbers were worrisome:
– The number of cases Thursday in New Mexico was 387. The day before, 426 new cases were recorded, the worst day since July and second-worst day since the pandemic began;
– The seven-day rolling average rose to 233 on Oct. 2, and Scrase said that likely would climb to over 300;
– Hospitalizations for COVID-19 reached 119, a 38% increase since Oct. 1;
– The state's test-positivity rate was 9.7% percent on Wednesday and had risen overall to 4.2% by Oct. 6, an increase of two full percentage points in less than two weeks;
– The state's spread rate of the disease was 1.24, well above the gating criteria of 1.05;
– Scrase said several hospital officials told him they were “very nervous” about the outbreak and intensive-care units were beginning to fill;
– New Mexico had the third-worst increase of cases in the nation, behind only Vermont and New Hampshire;
– Scrase said a Los Alamos National Laboratory heat map of coronavirus cases showed a huge amount of activity just across the Texas border, fueling the persistently high cases in southeast New Mexico and Dona Ana County. The Amarillo metro region has more than 2,800 active cases;
– Scrase said New Mexico was on track to have 700 daily cases soon, and exponential growth could mean 6,400 cases in a day before Halloween.
Scrase added the caseload hike couldn't be attributed to an increase in testing. He noted the average daily tests had risen only 25% in recent weeks, while the disease's caseload had more than doubled.
Scrase and Lujan Grisham said residents should increase efforts in wearing masks, social distancing, washing hands often and having lunch breaks alone. Residents should avoid group meetings, potlucks, work gatherings, eating lunch indoors and working while sick.
Lujan Grisham also urged residents to restrict travel to three or fewer COVID-safe activities per day.
“We may very well be forced to move backward in our reopening efforts,” she said, which “would be another devastating blow to our economy.”
When asked by a reporter what restrictions she might impose, Lujan Grisham refused to speculate, saying it was premature. She acknowledged she was considering a statewide curfew because it would cause the least amount of economic harm.
Regarding the upcoming Halloween holiday, Lujan Grisham cited Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines that discourage door-to-door trick-or-treating, haunted houses or costume parties. The federal agency instead recommends home-based activities for the holiday.
Thursday's health briefing was conducted by Zoom videoconference instead of the governor's office because Lujan Grisham was under a self-imposed quarantine. She had been exposed last week to a mansion custodial worker who tested positive for the virus. Lujan Grisham said the worker was experiencing only mild symptoms of the disease. The governor said she and her fiance so far have tested negative for the virus.