Anchorage Acting Mayor Austin Quinn-Davidson says that all of December will be a hunker-down time for Anchorage. Gatherings are all but prohibited.
The mayor said working with hospitals and doctors, she has decided this is the best way to keep health care workers safe and healthy.
The order closes restaurants, bars, reduces capacity in gyms and personal care services down to 25 percent and reduces private gatherings to six indoors and 10 outside.
Worship and political expression are somewhat exempted, with a 50 percent capacity limit.
People are ordered to work from home when possible and avoid entering indoor spaces outside their homes.
No indoor sports competition is allowed, although practice with distancing may continue. Theaters and bingo halls are to be shuttered.
Health care workers in many cases are working double shifts, since the pool of qualified nurses is small and there is no way to staff up quickly in Anchorage or Alaska, said representatives from the health care community that were present for the announcement, made via teleconference.
Quinn-Davidson said her job is to protect public health and prevent unnecessary death, and she was not concerned about public opposition.
“Most people understand that the only way to get our economy back on track is to have the pandemic subside,” she said.
“I want to call on people to donate to nonprofits,” she said. For those who do have jobs, “please push your boundaries … Do what you can. This will not last forever. We will get through this and I promise I will do everything in my power to bring us out stronger,” she said.
