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Gov. Janet Mills shuts down more businesses

Lockdown: Life in Maine grinds to a halt amid COVID-19 concerns

A note from our editor

DAILY UPDATE: Current information as of 11:30 a.m. Friday, April 3

The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Maine CDC) reported during its daily press conference Friday that two more deaths occurred Thursday, including a man in his 70s and a woman in her 80s, both of Cumberland County. There are 432 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Maine, up 56 from yesterday's figure of 376 and the highest increase in daily cases to date. This includes a total of 20 cases now in Penobscot County, which according to Dr. Nirav Shah, director of the Maine CDC, may indicate community transmission is now occuring in Penobscot County. The Maine CDC is no longer tracking negative cases due to the number of outside labs that are now testing samples, but Shah said previously that at least 8,400 cases have tested negative.

Shah said during the press conference that the average age of those testing positive is 55, 75 of all cases required hospitalization or are currently hospitalized, 113 have recovered and 75 cases include healthcare workers. Earlier he said two new cases included toddlers, bringing the number of children infected in Maine to four. The lab's backlog of tests has been reduced to about 400 and Shah said the state is currently underway in obtaining new equipment and test kits to conduct testing. He added that the state does have sufficent supplies for about 3,500 tests. Maine will also be receiving 15 of the new Abbott Laboratories ID Now rapid test platforms, and Shah said the state will get 100 test kits of which each kit can conduct 24 tests. 

There are now 245,070 cases across the U.S. - up nearly 30,000 from yesterday - and the death toll has now reached 5,949, up from 5,148 on yesterday according to the John Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center. Worldwide, infections are topped one million with 53,030 deaths. China's numbers remain suspect.

According to Shah, two counties have formally been designated as "community" transmission counties, which are Cumberland and York counties. Cumberland County remains the hardest hit, with a total of 222 confirmed cases, followed by York with 89. With the virus now present in 15 of Maine's 16 counties - Aroostook and Washington counties both recorded its first case on April 2 - Shah stressed that there is a strong likehood that the coronavirus is present in all counties and residents should act accordingly.

Gov. Janet Mills ordered Tuesday that Mainers stay home through April to help stem the rise of COVID-19 infections in the state. In making the order, Mills made exceptions for travel related to shopping for necessities, jobs in essential service industries, and caring for dependent relatives. The latest order follows her previous emergency orders closing all public-facing businesses.

The order, which took effect at midnight April 2, also prohibits the use of public transportation unless for an essential reason, and limits the number of people traveling in a single vehicle to persons within an immediate household. It also includes a prohibition on classroom or other in-person instruction until May 1, 2020.

Symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, shortness of breath, and lower respiratory distress. Individuals who exhibit those symptoms are advised to contact medical providers before going to a health care facility. Medical providers will make initial determinations about who should be tested.