BOSTON – Today, Governor Charlie Baker issued an emergency order requiring all businesses and organizations that do not provide “COVID-19 Essential Services” to close their physical workplaces and facilities to workers, customers and the public as of Tuesday, March 24th at noon until Tuesday, April 7th at noon. These businesses are encouraged to continue operations remotely.

The Baker-Polito Administration issued a list of designated businesses and other organizations that provide essential services and workforces related to COVID-19 that shall continue to operate brick and mortar facilities during this two-week time period. This list is based on federal guidance and amended to reflect the needs of Massachusetts’ unique economy. While these businesses are designated as essential, they are urged to follow social distancing protocols for workers in accordance with guidance from the Department of Public Health.

Businesses and organizations not on the list of essential services are encouraged to continue operations through remote means that do not require workers, customers, or the public to enter or appear at the brick-and-mortar premises closed by the order.

Restaurants, bars, and other establishments that sell food and beverage products to the public are encouraged to continue to offer food for take-out and by delivery if they follow the social distancing protocols set forth in Department of Public Health guidance. On-premises consumption of food or drink is prohibited.

Due to evolving spread of COVID-19 in Massachusetts, Governor Baker has directed the Department of Public Health to issue a stay at home advisory outlining self-isolation and social distancing protocols. Residents are advised to stay home and avoid unnecessary travel and other unnecessary activities during this two-week time period. Residents over 70 years of age or with underlying health conditions, who are considered at high risk when exposed to COVID-19, should limit social interactions with other people as much as possible.

The Baker-Polito Administration does not believe Massachusetts residents can be confined to their homes and does not support home confinement for public health reasons.

The Baker-Polito Administration Order also limits gatherings to 10 people during the state of emergency, a reduction from the 25 person limit established in an earlier order.

This includes community, civic, public, leisure, faith-based events, and any similar event or activity that brings together more than 10 persons in any confined indoor or outdoor space. The order does not prohibit gatherings of more than 10 people in an outdoor space, like a park or athletic field.

Categories of COVID-19 Essential Services:

Health Care & Public Health
Law Enforcement, Public Safety & First Responders
Food & Agriculture
Critical Manufacturing
Transportation
Energy
Water & Wastewater
Public Works
Communications and Information Technology
Financial Services
Defense Industry Base
Chemical Manufacturing & Hazardous Materials
Other Designated Community Based Essential Function & Government Operations
News Media

On his Facebook account, Mayor Jon Mitchell reported a second positive case on Coronavirus in New Bedford.

“New Bedford now has its second positive Coronavirus case, and it is a reminder to everyone that the virus is indeed here. COVID-19 spreads more than twice as fast, and has a mortality rate more than ten times that of seasonal flu. Keeping your and your family’s distance from others now will save lives. Here are some important facts about prevention.”

Details on New Bedford’s first coronavirus case announced Saturday can be read here.

Massachusetts offices announced three more deaths to coronavirus in the state bringing the total to five.

Green Bean, the popular coffee and sandwich shop at the corner of Union and Purchase streets will close their doors at 3 pm. Staff state they will open back up after coronavirus concerns alleviate. They are selling coffee in bulk at 50% until 3 pm.

Several other local businesses have either closed or plan on closing soon to include The Baker, Pa Raffas and Novo Mundo.

Massachusetts offices announced three more deaths to coronavirus in the state bringing the total to five.

To assist medical professionals as they respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical High School donated hundreds of medical supplies normally used for vocational education training to the New Bedford Emergency Management Service.

These items, from GNBVT’s medical assisting, dental assisting, nurse assisting/health assisting, and Emergency Medical Technician programs were delivered by Superintendent/Director James O’Brien and Facilities Manager Zeb Arruda to the New Bedford Emergency Management Operations Center.

The medical items donated include:

• N-95 face masks
• Medical gloves
• Face shields
• Isolation gowns
• Infection control kits
• Alcohol prep pads

“In these very difficult times, we all must do what we can to help our first responders and medical professionals so they can do their jobs safely while protecting their own health,” said James L. O’Brien, Superintendent/Director of Greater New Bedford Vocational Technical High School. “After hearing the calls from medical professionals that they don’t have enough medical supplies we recognized that we could help in a small way here in our area by donating these items, while at the same time teaching our students a valuable lesson about how everyone in our community can make a difference.”

About Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational-Technical High School:
Our mission at Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical High School is to provide an education that is rigorous, relevant, and meaningful to each student in a safe and supportive environment, resulting in academic, career, and technical excellence. With an enrollment of more than 2,000 students, GNBVT is the among the largest vocational-technical high schools in Massachusetts serving New Bedford, Dartmouth and Fairhaven.

The education and the vocational skills provided by GNBVT prepare students for the workforce or higher education by making them well-rounded and responsible citizens. We instill passion in our students, which produces internal drive, enthusiasm, and pride. Through perseverance, we ensure that our students receive the best education and experiences by offering over two dozen career majors. With a graduation rate of 90.1%, GNBVT is committed to student success and encourages lifelong learning.

Since 2009, 100% of GNBVT graduates have had a post-secondary plan which includes college, further technical training, work, or military.

#GNBVTcommunity #GNBVTpride

No Problemo has announced that they will be closing for two weeks starting monday: “Ok y’all I’m calling it….. In a effort to do our part in keeping people home we are gonna shut down for two weeks. I felt it was the right thing to do and right time to do it. Thanks to everyone who has always supported us and know we will be back better then ever….. or at least just as Good as we are now.”

Sugar Plum Sweets which just opened for the season last week announced on their Facebook page Sunday night they were closing. Here was there message: “After being open for only a week we have decided to close up temporarily. Hopefully this will all blow over very soon! Stay safe!”

Earlier in the evening Cafe Italia posted this:
“Due to the COVID 19 pandemic we decided to close temporarily until we can reopen again.
We want to keep our Family, Friends, Customers, and Community safe.
We look forward to seeing and serving all our customers soon.
Please stay healthy!!From all of us at Cafe Italia:
We Thank You for your continued support and can’t wait to have you all back at Cafe Italia enjoying your favorite Italian food. Stay healthy take care of yourselves and others.”

Finally, BesTeas which also opened very recently shared this post on social media:

We know that these decisions are not made lightly and are hopeful that all of these establishments are able to come back stronger than ever when this storm has passed.

On their Facebook page tonight Pa Raffa’s Italian restaurant, a New Bedford North end staple, has announced that they will be closing during the Covid-19 outbreak.

We’re counting the day until they re-open!

From Carla Amaral, Owner of Novo Mundo:

Hi Everyone! First things first, we want to take a moment to say Thank You to each and everyone of you who has thought of us during this extremely difficult time. Whether it be picking up, having something delivered, sending us encouraging messages and/or supporting us here on social media by spreading the word of our day to day. We truly appreciate it.

A Thank You as well to the fellow business owners who’ve showed us such a sense of community. Having each other to lean on has been a gift. We have decided to close, starting Monday, March 23 (2020), until further notice. As Carla said today, “In this time of having to keep everyone safe, it is MY job to make sure that not only are WE safe, but keeping our customers safe as well. That’s number one.”

Our hope is that with taking these steps we can help flatten the curve. This last week alone has been a hard one for so many reasons. We love what we do and all of our customers. Novo Mundo goes beyond just serving ; it goes beyond food. It’s where we as a crew, a secondary family, spend our days laughing with you all, crying, giving hugs (you know we hug guys!), celebrating birthdays, celebrating anniversaries, celebrating LIFE! It’s been so hard not having that here within these walls. To say that this hasn’t been emotionally and mentally challenging would be a lie.

We would also like to take this time to thank all medical personnel and essential workers who have been diligently working hard every single day, helping so many combat this unfortunate epidemic. Our thoughts are with you and we ask each and every one of our customers and friends to also keep these amazing people in your thoughts. They are risking themselves every single day, so that we can all be safe.

Take care of one another, take care of yourselves. We hope that when the time comes, you will all return with hungry bellies to serve and ready to fill this empty space again with laughter and celebrations.Many small businesses are now going to be facing a great uphill battle. We hope that when the time comes, together as a community, we will all pull together and be stronger than ever.

With love,
Carla & The Novo Mundo Crew

The following statement was issued by the Town of Nantucket:

Please be advised that the Nantucket Select Board and the Nantucket Health & Human Services Director with endorsement by the Board of Health have voted to issue a Stay at Home Order (aka “Shelter in Place Order”).

Effective Monday, March 23, 2020 at 5:00 PM through Monday, April 6, 2020 however to be reviewed by the Select Board, Public Health, Nantucket Cottage Hospital and the Incident Command weekly to determine when the Order will be suspended. The Board stresses that there is a possibility that this unprecedented public health event might last longer than the Governor’s current school closing order.

All persons living in the Town and County of Nantucket are directed to stay at their place of residence until further notice. This not a “lockdown” and essential services such as grocery stores, pharmacies and restaurants (including take-out and coffee shops – for delivery or curbside pick-up only) remain open for business.

Visit: https://nantucket-ma.gov/1708/Stay-at-Home—Shelter-in-Place for full press release, emergency order and FAQs.

Three more deaths from COVID-19 in Massachusetts, total number in the state to five

Three men – two in their 70s from Hampden and Berkshire counties and a third man in his 90s from Suffolk County– have died from COVID-19-related illness, bringing the total number of deaths from the novel coronavirus in Massachusetts to five. All three men were hospitalized. The Berkshire County man was reported to have an underlying health condition but all three men were in an age group that is more likely to experience severe disease from COVID-19 regardless of prior health status.

The confirmation of their deaths followed a weekend during which the commonwealth’s first two COVID-19 deaths were confirmed: a man in his 80s from Suffolk County who had been hospitalized and had pre-existing health conditions and a woman in her 50s from Middlesex County who had a pre-existing condition, predisposing them both to more severe disease.

As of 4 p.m. today, 6,004 residents of Massachusetts have been tested for COVID-19 by the State Public Health Laboratory and commercial labs. Of those, 646 people have tested positive. For the first time, DPH is also providing data on the age range of COVID-19 cases to the online dashboard.

COVID-19 activity is increasing in Massachusetts. At this time, if people are only mildly symptomatic, they should speak to their healthcare provider about whether they need to be assessed in person. If not, they should stay at home while they are sick. Asymptomatic family members should practice social distancing and immediately self-isolate if they develop symptoms.

In the United States, there have been more than 15,219 of COVID-19 and more than 200 deaths, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Massachusetts and nationwide, the public is being asked to avoid crowds, stay 6 feet away from others, not shake hands or hug, and call/Facetime and online chat with friends and loved ones rather than meet face to face.

More information about COVID-19 can be found at www.mass.gov/covid19.

“It is no question of how challenging recovery can be for individuals. There are many different steps to maintain recovery. Some different approaches can also benefit certain people and also benefit the community.

Animals have a great impact on humans’ lives. Animal-assisted therapy or even being around animals has been used to help those in recovery. This type of therapy can be used to treat mental health conditions, and substance use disorder. Interaction with animals also has many health benefits.

Different studies have proven that owning a pet can change the body’s response to stress, help lower cholesterol, and increase physical activity. For those who are building their recovery support system, animals show unconditional love. Animals never criticize or judge you, and show unconditional acceptance. This love and affection for someone in recovery can really help one’s self-esteem.

Having pets around can control the feeling of loneliness. Sometimes, being in recovery means you may have lost some old relationships or friendships that can’t be returned. Animals provide companionship and love to humans in their own special way. Co-dependency can be a problem for those in recovery. Animals can provide the companionship in a way that doesn’t put anyone at risk for forming an unhealthy relationship.

It would be something for someone in recovery to say they have a sponsor, CSP worker, case manager…etc. and a dog to help them along their journey. Not only could an animal affect our lives but we can also affect theirs.

Approximately 7.6 million animals each year end up being surrendered to an animal shelter. Even if it is impossible for you to rescue a pet, many shelters thrive off the help of their volunteers.

Next time your sponsor is too busy to meet with you, or you missed the last NA meeting, think about brightening a homeless dog or cat’s life!

Local shelters accepting volunteers;
(most shelters accept online volunteer application)

Lighthouse Animal Shelter (508-999-7397)
596 Hathaway Road. New Bedford, MA.

Humane Society & Shelter (508-995-6661)
31 Ventura Drive. Dartmouth, MA.

Forever Paws (508-677-9154)
300 Lynwood Street. Fall River, MA.