Gov. Wolf extends mandatory stay-at-home orders to seven counties

Gov. Wolf extends mandatory stay-at-home orders to seven counties

By Jen Rehill

March 24, 2020

Pennsylvania now has seven counties under mandatory stay-at-home orders – and has extended all school closings another two weeks, Jen Rehill reports.

The new stay-at-home order doesn’t apply to the Lehigh Valley. For neighboring Monroe County, Philadelphia and its suburbs, and the Pittsburgh region, Governor Wolf says residents must stay in their homes at all times now unless a life depends on leaving.

“All of us need to take this situation seriously. Most of us have not experienced a disruption in daily life of this type ever before. Our commonwealth has not experienced a disruption of this magnitude in its supply chain since at least the Civil War,” said Governor Wolf.

Lehigh Valley residents have also been asked to stay at home as much as possible – but are not currently under order to do so. 

“Clearly this is not a great answer. But it’s all we have until the health system to get the stock of protective equipment, like beds, ventilators and other things our system needs to treat people with the disease. And the only way we can buy time is to distance ourselves from others.”

COVID-19 has sickened more than 600 Pennsylvanians and caused six deaths statewide, including two in Northampton County.

Wolf says if residents stay home, lives will be saved. He hopes not to need to expand the lockdown to the whole state, but that if coronavirus cases keep rising “exponentially” – doubling nearly every two days – as they are now – he may not have a choice in order to give hospitals time to prepare for a surge of very sick patients.