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Norwalk Mayor Harry Rilling announced Tuesday, Aug. 10, that effective at 12 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 13, the city will require indoor face coverings for all people, regardless of their vaccination status, joining Stamford and Bridgeport in issuing mask mandates.
The Mayor’s executive order affects all establishments in Norwalk, such as bars, gyms, restaurants, movie theaters, hardware stores, and supermarkets where physical distancing cannot be maintained.
This order will be enforced by the Norwalk Police Department and Norwalk Health Department.
“As the Delta Variant spreads, our case numbers and test positivity rate continue to climb to levels we have not seen in months, said Rilling. "Last year, we began seeing a resurgence in cases in late September. However, we are starting to see that trend happen now. Transmission is high, and we are following the CDC guidelines."
Rilling's added that he "appreciated residents, employers, and customers for their continued cooperation.”
In Norwalk, there are still roughly 28,000 residents who have not been fully vaccinated. Some of these people are eligible for the vaccine, but many are under the age of 12, and currently not eligible to be vaccinated.
People who are unvaccinated are at a higher risk of contracting and spreading COVID-19, city officials said.
Over the last month, the COVID-19 test positivity rate in Norwalk went from under 1 percent to over 3 percent, and the case rate climbed from less than 5 cases per 100,000 population to over 10 per 100,000 population.
While Norwalk and Fairfield County remain in the substantial, or orange, level of virus transmission per the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, nearly 75 percent of the country is at a high, or red, level of transmission.
Norwalk and the rest of the state are trending in the direction of high community transmission, Rilling said.
The majority of new cases and hospitalizations around the state continue to be those who are not vaccinated.
The latest information regarding COVID-19, including testing locations and vaccine clinics, can be found at norwalkct.org/citynews.
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