Noting rising COVID-19 infections in Pike County, Magnolia Mayor Anthony Witherspoon mandated the wearing of face masks in public on Wednesday, making Magnolia the first local municipality to do so.
People must wear masks while inside businesses or out in public or else face fines, according to Witherspoon’s executive order, which applies to employees and customers.
“The Mayor of the City of Magnolia, Mississippi, in order to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 and flatten the growth curve, must take extraordinary measures to prohibit and limit nonessential close personal contact among its citizens,” the order reads.
The order, which went into effect 6 p.m. Wednesday, applies to anyone over 2 years old who is able to wear a mask without suffering medical issues.
Individuals who violate the order will be given an initial warning and will be fined $500 for a second infraction. A third infraction will result in only a $50 fine. A fourth violation will result in a $100 fine or 12 hours in the city jail, according to the order.
Businesses also get a first-time warning if an employee or customer is not wearing a mask.
The second violation is a $500 fine. A third citation of a business will result in a $1,000 fine or a 24 hour closure of operations.
Witherspoon also authorized an active moratorium on public and private gatherings in the city for up to 60 days.
In July, Witherspoon told aldermen he intended to require masks in the city. He directed city attorney Charles Miller to draft an ordinance, which was presented Wednesday. Aldermen extended Witherspoon’s executive authority to respond to the pandemic in the spring.
The order comes as Pike County had three more COVID-19 deaths confirmed on Wednesday and nine new cases, bringing the total number of confirmed COVID-19 deaths to 24 and cases to 537 since March. One of the newly confirmed deaths occurred between July 2-7 and was identified from death certificate reports.
“Things are getting worse, not better, in our state,” Gov. Tate Reeves said Wednesday afternoon. “We’re in the middle of this, and our hospitalizations are going up.”
Reeves said wearing a mask in public is not a political action but critically important to save lives.
“It became very clear that President Trump and his administration support the wearing of masks, and I think it’s critically important in our state,” Reeves said.
Health officials noted an increase of more than 1,000 confirmed infections Wednesday afternoon.
Pike County nearly doubled its rate of death over the past month and outbreaks at nursing homes are mostly to blame, health officials said.
“We continue to see ongoing outbreaks in nursing homes, more and more every day,” State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs said. “The best thing we can do for our hospitals is keep coronavirus from spreading in the community.”
Additionally, Reeves and Dobbs said that younger people are influencing increasing trends of transmission throughout the state.
“There a re a lot of reasons for the uptick in cases, but one of those reasons is young people going to bars and completely ignoring health and safety guidelines,” Reeves said.
Reeves also expressed frustration about people who are ignoring his mandates to stem the spread of the virus.
“One of the problems that I’m having a hard time convincing you, evidently the words on the page don’t matter. If people don’t comply, it doesn’t matter,” he said. “What slows the spread of the virus is you and your community wearing a mask and maintaining social distance.”
MEMA Director Greg Michel said businesses and municipalities can contact www.ms-ppe.org to request additional deliveries of personal protective equipment.
And Dobbs said people shouldn’t hold their breath waiting on a coronavirus vaccine.
“Vaccine trials, I think they’re moving along really well but I think it’s going to be a long time before we can utilize that,” he said.
