Delaware Valley Health Officials Urge Caution To Avoid Coronavirus Resurgence After Labor Day Weekend
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- With all of the gatherings on this holiday weekend and with the easing of restrictions, officials are worried about another resurgence of the coronavirus like what happened after Memorial Day and the Fourth of July. Officials say Labor Day Weekend will set the course for the fall, the next phase of the pandemic.
Holiday celebrations could bring another wave of the virus, which could be especially dangerous as we head into flu season.
"Please be safe, please be responsible," New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said.
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Murphy urged caution Friday for Labor Day Weekend as we row into the end of summer. Health officials are worried holiday activities will lead to another coronavirus surge.
"The cost of attending a barbecue or enjoying a drink with friends should not be a deadly virus," New Jersey Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli said.
But it's happened before following holiday celebrations. There were virus spikes after both Memorial Day and the Fourth of July.
Now with numbers starting to go down, officials hope to avoid another resurgence after Labor Day.
"Celebrate safely. That means avoiding gatherings, wearing a mask when you are around folks who do not live in your household," Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said.
Looking into the future, Independence Park is now expanding access to the Liberty Bell, but health officials say the upcoming fall could be difficult with more people inside because of cooler temperatures, some students back in class, and the arrival of the flu season.
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"We don't want to see a surge under any circumstances," Dr. Anthony Fauci said, "but particularly as we go on the other side of Labor Day and enter into the fall, we want to go into that with a running start in the right direction. We don't want to go into that with another surge that we have to turn around again."
Health officials say it's best to keep interactions outside, safely distanced. Most of the previous outbreaks have been linked to crowded inside gatherings.
"Please don't have parties where people do not have masks on, just because they are a neighbor does not mean they couldn't be positive," Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, said. "Together we need to get through Labor Day Weekend, really protecting one another."
And there's this reminder from health officials. Most people infected with COVID-19 don't have symptoms but are still contagious. The country is currently averaging about 40,000 new cases per day, up dramatically from the 22,000 a day before the Memorial Day Weekend.
