SAN DIEGO (CNS) - Students at University of San Diego and San Diego State University will move out of their dorms today amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The number of positive cases in the county rose again Tuesday, to 60 total in the county among residents and non-residents alike.
The following new public health orders took effect Tuesday in an attempt to limit the spread of the illness, also known as COVID-19:
-- All public and private gatherings of 50 or more people are legally prohibited, and all nonessential gatherings of any size are strongly discouraged.
-- All bars, adult entertainment businesses and any business which serves alcohol and not food are to close.
-- All restaurants must prohibit dine-in service and restrict services to drive-through, take-out and delivery. Restaurants and employees are urged to follow social distancing guidelines during this time.
-- Businesses that require a doctor's note for a leave of absence must suspend those policies until the public health crisis is over.
-- All public schools must cancel all classes, gatherings and events.
-- Nonessential personnel are prohibited from entering hospitals and long-term care facilities, and all essential personnel displaying symptoms of COVID-19 are prohibited.
-- Hospitals with confirmed cases of COVID-19 must report such cases immediately to county health officials.
-- All people traveling to San Diego County from China, Iran, South Korea, Italy or any other country at extreme contagion risk must self- quarantine in their homes for 14 days, regardless if they show symptoms or not.
-- All people showing symptoms of COVID-19 must self-isolate in their homes.
Additionally, county health officials strongly urged people over the age of 65 with underlying medical conditions or a suppressed immune system to self-isolate. Hospitals were urged to delay elective procedures.
San Diego State University students were sent an email Tuesday morning stating the university had plans to “expedite move-out plans for students this week.”
The university said that students living on campus are being asked to make arrangements to move out immediately. Most students should be out by 7 p.m. Wednesday.
Exceptions include students who can't go home, those without a home to return to and those with known health and safety risks.
University of San Diego had originally asked residential students to move by March 22, but sent a memo Tuesday advising that all students should move out of their dorms by late today.
San Diego Community College District colleges, including City, Mesa and Miramar colleges, have officially closed their campuses.
Remote operations for the schools begins March 23.
At least one person with a connection to three La Jolla schools has tested positive for COVID-19, San Diego Unified School District Superintendent Cindy Marten said in a statement late Tuesday.
“The schools impacted by this announcement are Bird Rock Elementary, La Jolla Elementary and La Jolla High School,” Marten said.
County health officials notified school district officials of the positive test or tests Tuesday afternoon, but no information about that person or persons has been disclosed.
Encinitas Union School District reported late Sunday that a person at Olivenhain Pioneer Elementary School has tested presumptive positive for coronavirus. The district has not yet said whether the infected person was a student, teacher or school employee.
San Diego County libraries are shifting to curbside pickup and drop- off to encourage residents to practice social distancing while still getting books, music and movies from the library.
Starting today, residents can use the library's online catalog or call their branch libraries and pick them up between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.
The county has secured more than 1,100 motel rooms for people without homes or who cannot return to homes to isolate should they show symptoms. County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher said the county would attempt to secure more than 2,000 rooms for unsheltered people.
County Supervisor Greg Cox said the county had placed more than 200 hand-washing stations around the county.
The Navy announced Tuesday it closed its Training Support Command center in San Diego on Saturday after a third sailor with ties to the school tested presumptive positive for the novel coronavirus. Two students and an instructor at the school have tested presumptive positive for the illness in the past several days, according to the Navy.
The latest sailor with ties to the school to test positive is stationed aboard the USS Essex and had been attending a course at Naval Base San Diego since Feb. 6.
“The individual is currently isolated at home and restricted in movement,” according to a Navy statement that said personnel who came into contact with the sailor have been notified and are in self-isolation.
Two more sailors, one stationed on the USS Boxer, which is homeported in San Diego, and the other aboard the littoral combat ship Coronado based at Naval Base San Diego, also tested positive for COVID-19.
The schoolhouse where the training occurred will remain closed until further notice. Military health professionals are conducting a contact investigation to see if any additional precautionary measures need to be taken.
Two Marines at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar have also tested positive for the virus, one on Friday and another on Saturday, leading to new health protections on the base.
A coalition including Fletcher, San Diego Gas & Electric, The San Diego Foundation, United Way of San Diego and the San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council announced Monday the creation of a fund to help nonprofit organizations provide food and financial assistance to people impacted by the global pandemic.
The San Diego COVID-19 Community Response Fund launched with $1.3 million in funding, meant for nonprofits helping with food insecurities, rent and utility assistance and income replacement.
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