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The Connecticut Department of Health defines municipalities in the COVID-19 “red zone” as those that have 15 or more COVID-19 cases per 100,000 population, forcing them to enact previous restrictions that had been put in place.
In the latest information released by the Department of Health, Norwalk saw 453 new cases, with a rate of 36.3 per 100,000 population. Bridgeport was at 380 new cases with a rate of 18.7 per 100,000 population.
In Phase 2 restrictions include:
- Restaurant occupancy is reduced from 75 percent to 50 percent;
- Indoor gatherings are limited to 25 people, down from 100; Outdoor gatherings are limited to 100 down from 150 people.
- Church and religious gatherings are only permitted to allow 100 people to congregate, down from 200.
The rollbacks go into effect at noon on Sunday, Nov. 1. There are currently 30 towns and cities in the “red zone,” across the state.
In Norwalk Mayor Harry Rilling said that they’ve been ramping up testing in an attempt to slow down the virus, but it has been spreading rapidly because not everyone has been following the public health guidelines.
Rilling noted that they’ve also added more staff to help enforce COVID-19 regulations, and businesses found to be in violation will be shut down for two weeks.
"This is a difficult decision, as I do not want to see our local businesses impacted, but my priority remains the health and safety of our residents," Riling said. "Our cases are rising and I am deeply concerned.”
More information on Bridgeport’s rollback was expected to be announced by Mayor Joe Ganim on Friday, including a curfew.
In Fairfield County, the infection rate spiked to 6.1 percent on Thursday, Oct. 29, with 1,319 positive cases out of 21,739 tests administered. The infection rate is the highest the state has reported since June.
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