Peninsula Supe Warns San Mateo Co. Could Be On COVID-19 Watch List 'Forever'
SANTA MATEO (KPIX) -- A Peninsula lawmaker warns San Mateo County will make the state monitoring list by Tuesday or Wednesday, and could remain on the list for "forever" if people don't change their behavior.
"We could be in this watch list forever so if we don't change our behaviors and if we don't change our actions we could be in this forever," said Supervisor David Canepa. "We really need people to wear their damn mask. Make no mistake about it, if we do not take action right now, the consequences are going to be catastrophic."
San Mateo County is the only Bay Area county that has not made the state's watch list. Up until recently, it has been able to keep its COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations below the state's threshold. However, the numbers have been increasing. As of Monday, the county reported 4,551 confirmed cases and 114 deaths.
Under the state's guidelines, if a county makes the watch list three days in a row, it must shut down further. That means San Mateo county's hair salons, nail salons, gyms and worship services could be shuttered by the end of the week if Canepa is correct.
Justin Lu, a San Mateo county resident, raced to get his haircut Monday after learning the county was on the verge of making the watch list.
"I figured I'd get it cut before they close," Lu said. "I'm sure people from out of county come here now to get their haircut."
Lu wonders if the state is making the right decision by putting a blanket order of closures on certain businesses once cases rise.
"I think it's more important that the businesses operate safely, I think that's the key rather than just shutting businesses down," Lu said.
Canepa said moving forward, he's working at providing more testing for the Latinx community, which has been hit especially hard by COVID-19. He's also looking into providing financial relief for those who are forced to quarantine for 14 days.
Still, he emphasized that people need to follow the emergency order or the county could remain on the list.
"I don't know if we're going to be able to recover," said Canepa.