The city of San Francisco placed a ban on public events of more than 1,000 people due to concerns about the spread of the coronavirus, Mayor London Breed announced Wednesday.
The ban, which will apply to all Golden State Warriors games, will take effect for two weeks and can be reauthorized by the San Francisco health minister if necessary.
“We know that this order is disruptive, but it is an important step to support public health,” Breed said in a statement. “We’re following the recommendations of public health officials to slow the spread of COVID-19 in our community. This order mirrors actions being taken by other local governments and is informed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines.”
The Warriors have said that Thursday’s game against the Brooklyn Nets will be played without fans, keeping pace with a recent NCAA announcement that all NCAA March Madness games will be played to empty stadiums.
Due to escalating concerns about the spread of the coronavirus, and in consultation with the City and County of San Francisco, tomorrow night’s game vs. the Nets at Chase Center will be played without fans. Fans with tickets to this game will receive a refund in the amount paid. pic.twitter.com/DMpO71ocvg
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) March 11, 2020
The San Francisco Giants also announced that they would be canceling an exhibition game against the Oakland A’s due to the ban.
OFFICIAL #SFGiants statement: pic.twitter.com/1oHHGLUIxb
— SFGiants (@SFGiants) March 11, 2020
Breed’s announcement comes at a time when the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the coronavirus a global pandemic, and the number of cases in the U.S. soared to more than 1,000.
Nearly 100 people tested positive for the virus in the Bay Area, including 14 in San Francisco as of Wednesday morning, KRON reported.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.