The City of Newton will continue its curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. nightly and other COVID-19 prevention orders until May 18.
The previous extension went through May 5, but after meeting with department heads including Police Chief Randy Patrick and Fire Chief J.C. Collins, Mayor Murray Weems decided to extend the curfew to help prevent additional unnecessary travel in the overnight hours.
“I just feel like if we can help keep down traffic in the overnight hours, it will help contain the spread of the coronavirus,” Weems said Friday. “After talking with the police chief and others, we felt like it was best to extend the curfew.”
Only those who are reporting to work or traveling due to an emergency will be allowed on the roads overnight. If anyone is traveling, they will need ID badges to show that they are reporting for work.
“Those are the only people who will need to be traveling during those hours, such as doctors, nurses, police officers, firefighters, EMTs or those who have to report for work,” Weems said April 1. “This curfew is to prevent people from just going out to the convenience store or other retail businesses in the middle of the night for any reason other than an emergency or for work.”
The action also includes a ban on public gatherings, which will continue to affect all churches and other public places where more than 10 people would likely gather. Weems said the ban would also extend to those churches who may try to hold worship in their parking lots regardless of whether congregants would be in vehicles.
Graveside services will be the only public gatherings allowed. Funerals may not hold services inside their chapels, but they can hold a graveside service as long as they safe social distancing is practiced.
“They can have more than 10 at a graveside service, but they must be spread out and not congregate in one specific locale,” Weems said April 1.
As of Thursday at 6 p.m., Newton had 87 confirmed coronavirus cases. There were only 15 reported cases as of April 16.
