Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Total cases reach 585 as new death reported and Pritzker issues ‘stay at home’ order
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker issued a “stay-at-home” order Friday for the entire state starting Saturday at 5 p.m. through April 7. Residents can still go to the grocery stores, put gas in their cars, take walks outside and make pharmacy runs, the governor said at a news conference.
Pritzker also announced another coronavirus-related death, a Cook County woman in her 70s. It’s the state’s fifth death associated with COVID-19. State officials reported 163 new cases of the virus on Friday, bringing the total since the start of the outbreak to 585.
At the same news conference, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Chicago park facilities and libraries will be closed as of 5 p.m. Saturday. People will still be able to walk around in the park space, she said. The governor also announced that the shutdown of Illinois elementary and high schools will be extended through at least April 7. CPS had already extended its shutdown through April 20.
Earlier on Friday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the Trump administration has decided to push the income tax filing date to July 15 from April 15, while the president announced the U.S. and Mexico will sharply curtail cross-border travel.
Globally, more than 10,000 people had died from COVID-19 since the outbreak began late last year in China, according to tracking by Johns Hopkins University. In addition to Illinois, New York state also joined California on Friday in ordering nearly all residents to stay home.
The Tribune is keeping a running list of Chicago-area closings and cancellations and asking experts to answer your questions about COVID-19.
Here are the latest updates Friday on the coronavirus in the Chicago area and Illinois:
7:36 p.m.: Coronavirus concerns closed thousands of stores this week. Here are some still open in the Chicago area.
U.S. retailers from Apple to Urban Outfitters are closing thousands of stores across the country in an attempt to slow the new coronavirus’ spread.
But far more stores have closed in the past few days as businesses encouraged employees to work from home, large gatherings of people have been banned and much of daily life has ground to a halt.
On Friday, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker issued a stay-at-home order for the entire state beginning 5 p.m. Saturday through April 7, requiring all but essential businesses such as grocery stores, pharmacies and gas stations to close.
Though many Chicago-area residents have been stocking up for days, people will still be able to leave home to shop for essentials under the order. So if your initial stock-up supplies are running low and you can’t or don’t want to wait for an online order, what’s still open?
6:43 p.m.: First 4 cases of coronavirus recorded at Holy Cross Hospital
The first cases of COVID-19 to be treated at Sinai Health System have been confirmed Friday evening, all of whom were treated at Holy Cross Hospital, on the city’s Southwest Side.
One patient came through the emergency room on Friday afternoon, and three others were admitted earlier this week, Dan Regan, spokesman for Sinai Health System, said in a statement.
The person from the ER was discharged to their home for isolation and the three others had been waiting for test results, which came back positive this afternoon, according to Regan. They remain at Holy Cross.
Citing patient privacy, Regan said they could offer no additional details about their conditions or treatment.
Holy Cross is located at 2701 W. 68th St. in the city’s Marquette Park neighborhood.
Suspected COVID-19 patients are placed in isolation for testing and treatment, and Sinai works in coordination with the Chicago Department of Public Health, the statement said.
These four marked the first patients to test positive for COVID-19 at Sinai Health System, which consists of seven hospitals and health care centers, including Holy Cross Hospital. —Rosemary Sobol
6:30 p.m.: Ordered to stay home, Chicagoans already were preparing to hunker down
By the time Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced an order requiring Illinois residents to “stay at home” in an attempt to contain the new coronavirus pandemic, shoppers stocking up before the weekend were prepared for the news.
“I’m making this not as a panic run. It’s an odds-and-ends run, so we won’t be tempted to go out later," said Alaina Tucker, 40, of Chicago’s North Center neighborhood.
She was picking up peanut butter, applesauce, Diet Coke and paper products at a Costco store on Clybourn Avenue after making a stock-up trip last week. Around 1:45 p.m., the line to enter stretched roughly 10 minutes.
Samantha Cooper, 29, waiting patiently in the checkout line at a Jewel-Osco in the West Loop Friday afternoon, hadn’t heard about the order but said it wouldn’t change her plans: hunker down for the near future.
“We’re pretty well stocked up, so this was going to be my last run before we stay inside for the next two weeks,” Cooper said. “If that’s what they have to do to contain this, I’m all for it.”
Employees at Aldi and Trader Joe’s on Clybourn Avenue said they were preparing for a possible rush as news of the order spread, and some shoppers who hit stores Friday morning said they were hoping to beat evening and weekend crowds.
Though several pharmacies and retailers selling groceries, household supplies, and medicine have trimmed hours to give workers more time to clean and restock, they’ve generally remained open.
Walgreens, CVS, Jewel-Osco, Mariano’s, Home Depot and Blain’s Farm and Fleet said Friday that their stores are considered essential under the governor’s order and will remain open.
9:51 a.m.: North of Illinois border, Milwaukee mayor under self-quarantine
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett to the list of politicians who are self-quarantining after coming into contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19.
Barrett announced on Thursday night that he was self-quarantining for 14 days. He came to that decision after consulting with public health officials.
The 66-year-old mayor says he intends to continue working from home, using teleconference and videoconference.
U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore, also of Milwaukee, said Monday she was self-quarantining after coming into contact on March 8 with someone who tested positive. Former Gov. Scott Walker also self-quarantined himself for two weeks for the same reason.
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