NEW JERSEY – The COVID-19 disease of the coronavirus is currently in the Garden State. Governor Phil Murphy has advised all NJ residents to stay at home and avoid unnecessary travel.

Novel Coronavirus is Novel (meaning “new”) coronavirus is a virus strain that has only spread in people since December 2019. Health experts are concerned because little is known about this new virus and it has the potential to cause severe illness in some people.

As of Tuesday, March 17, the state Department of Health dashboard is reporting 267 active cases of the coronavirus. Patients range from 5 to 93 years old.

NJTV is reporting that patients of Riverside Medical Group are able to get tested at a drive-thru outdoor tent set-up. Patients are first screened via telephone and if they meet the qualifications, are allowed to visit the drive-thru facility. Results are expected within four days. After tested, patients are expected to continue to self quarantine until results are returned.

The Middlesex County Progressive candidates have issued a press release to call on County officials to implement mobile COVID-19 testing, suspend evictions and house all homeless.

Curfews

Gov. Murphy announced on Monday that he is encouraging all “non-essential” travel be avoided between the hours of 8 p.m. and 5 a.m. He wants “everyone to be home — and not out.” While this is not a mandatory curfew, it is strongly encouraged.

Gyms, nightclubs, bars, racetracks and performing arts centers were closed at 8PM on Monday for an undetermined amount of time.

Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla announced Monday night that all residents will be under curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m.

Teaneck officials have issued an executive order on Sunday limiting the number of people inside grocery stores and closing business that involve significant physical contact including hair/nail salons, barber ships, health clubs, martial arts studios and daycare centers. Mayor Hameeduddin has asked all 40,000 residents to self-quarantine themselves.

What’s Open/Closed?

Open

All food establishments have been instructed by Gov. Murphy to not disallow dine-in customers. Takeout and delivery services can be offered on a limited basis.

Most big retail stores including Walmart, Target & Costco are open; however, store hours may be affected. Pharmacies are open.

The New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq continue to remain open. Nasdaq has plans to transition to electronic trading. Floor brokers will be allowed on trading floor in a limited capacity.

Most houses of worship which regularly accommodate large gatherings with technologies for live-streaming have transitioned to a remote-only viewings for services. Harvest International Ministries of Irvington, NJ is currently inviting members of the congregation and beyond to worship via livestream of Sunday services.

Closed

Movie theaters, casinos, & many major clothing stores have closed. NJ Motor Vehicle Commission locations have been ordered to close for two weeks by Gov. Murphy.

All public, private & parochial pre-K through 12 schools in addition to colleges and universities will close today.

NJ Courts: New Jersey is immediately suspending all new jury trials indefinitely.

New Jersey courts are currently in planning stages to shift all in-person appearances to be conducted via telephone or video conference.

Municipal court proceedings have been suspended for two weeks.

Price-Gouging

Business owners may not raise the price of goods more than 10% during an emergency. They face fines of up to $10,000 for a first offense. Attorney General Gurbir Grewal is taking a “all-hands-on-deck approach” to combat price-gouging.

99 Cent Dream on Newark Avenue of Jersey City was fined $90,000 for raising the cost of cleaning products from $2.99 to $6.99. Nine tickets of $10,000 each were issued to the owners. NJ.com reached out to both owners for comment but received no response. Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop published this video on Twitter.

I’m w/ Prosecutor @JakeHudnut + JCPD issuing tickets for price gouging. We won’t accept people taking advantage of residents. Tissues, Clorox, cleaning items, all doubling +. Rubbing alcohol went from $2.99 to $6.99. People sometimes can be terrible in how they treat eachother.. pic.twitter.com/GarSAkAW35 — Steven Fulop (@StevenFulop) March 12, 2020

Officials are asking residents to call 973-504-6240 to report price gouging, or use this online form.

Transportation

As of the author date of this article, NJ Transit is continuing to operate public transportation services on normal schedule. NJ transit has noted on their website an improvement on cleaning processes. “NJ TRANSIT has enhanced its cleaning efforts to include disinfecting vehicles every 24 hours. Hard surface cleaning and disinfecting typically includes handholds, arm rests, seating areas and restrooms.”

NJ Transit also writes that their enhanced cleaning regiment includes disinfecting of “frequent customer touchpoints such as ticket vending machines, handrails, and door handles.” The transportation service claims this cleaning process occurs once every shift in major stations and terminals.

Lyft & Uber have suspended shared rides as of Tuesday for all users in Canada & United States. Individual rides are still available.

Below shows a dashcam video shared on reddit depicting a trucker traveling down NJ Turnpike at peak rush hour with no traffic.

Prevention

The Center for Disease and Control (CDC) has issued the following statement:

Stay home if you are sick

Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds

Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands

Avoid close contact with those who are sick

Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, throw the tissue in the trash, then wash hands

The New York Times has published an article which claims that soap and water are the best weapon for combatting viruses and disease.

“When you wash your hands with soap and water, you surround any microorganisms on your skin with soap molecules. The hydrophobic tails of the free-floating soap molecules attempt to evade water; in the process, they wedge themselves into the lipid envelopes of certain microbes and viruses, prying them apart.”

Small Business Response

101.5 reported that Gov. Murphy is asking small businesses to keep paying their workers as ‘help is on the way’. The state applied Tuesday morning for federal disaster assistance from the federal government and is hoping for quick approval.

Asaro-Angelo said. “If the bill is passed as written and as expected, 99.8% of New Jersey employers will be able to defray months’ worth of employee paid time off related to COVID-19.”

Small business owners across the state are being hit big with operation restrictions & closures. #EyesOnNJ News and its partners are committed to helping those across the Garden State by offering real-time virtual communication systems, technologies & services for our small business leaders to continue to meet directives and goals between management, employees, teams and end-users.

All of us at #EyesOnNJ News encourage our readers & viewers to take care and check back here and the CDC website for updates regarding what to do (and not do.)