Officials in San Bernardino County are planning to reopen county parks, lakes, trails and golf courses open on a limited scale starting this weekend, Supervisor Curt Hagman said Wednesday.
Activities in these spaces will be limited to members of a household, however, and while parking will be open, no camping, contact sports, parties and BBQs will be allowed, in compliance with California’s stay-at-home order.
Residents are still being asked to adhere to social distancing requirements and county health orders of wearing masks outside the home.
Earlier Wednesday, officials announced that Mt. Baldy Mountain Resort is also opening back up to skiers and snowboarders.
In terms of reopening businesses and other areas of the county, Hagman said that officials will heed any guidelines set by the state. On Wednesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom said that while progress is being made on COVID-19 testing, one of the six factors he laid out for reopening the state, officials are not ready to say exactly when the stay-at-home order can be lifted.
As of Tuesday, the county had a total of 1,489 COVID-19 cases with 67 deaths.
Nursing homes in the county have been hit “incredibly hard” by the virus, Trudy Raymundo, the county’s public health director, noted Wednesday.
In response, officials have created a skilled nursing task force to be able to increase testing capacity at those facilities for both residents and staff.
She said the long term goal is to ensure that all county facilities can provide appropriate care for those who test positive for coronavirus or are suspected of being infected.
Officials have also stepped up their efforts to track the illness in the county and will be expanding categories for age, race, locations of deaths and where testing is available.
Raymundo said officials are hoping to identify disparities so they can reach and educate those who may be in underserved communities and are disproportionately affected by the virus.
Dr. Rodney Borger, the chairman of emergency medicine for Arrowhead Regional Medical Center, said the hospital has not seen a large increase in patients in 10 days.
He added that while the hospital has the capacity to treat patients who become seriously ill, officials are still working to increase capacity even further in the event of a surge.
“We’re going to keep this up and win this battle and win this war, ultimately,” Borger said.
