Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson said Thursday that the city’s curfew is expiring one week from today, “unless something occurs before that.”

“It’s good through midnight and at that time, there will be no more curfew,” said Stimpson, adding that it expires right before midnight on May 1.

Stimpson’s comment came during his daily Facebook briefing on the coronavirus pandemic that has hit Mobile County the hardest of any county in Alabama. As of Thursday afternoon, Mobile County has 796 confirmed cases and 38 deaths. Jefferson County, which is by far larger in population, was No. 2 at 775 confirmed cases and 31 deaths.

Stimpson announced the curfew on April 3, and the Mobile City Council approved an ordinance authorizing it on April 7. The ordinance also included a $100 fine upon the first offense for people who are not considered “essential” workers.

Mobile’s curfew essentially functions as a 24-hour decree, with a nighttime curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., and a “stay at home” order from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Most cities like Birmingham and Tuscaloosa, since last month, have adopted ordinances with maximum fines of up to $500 for violating the city-enforced curfews. But few cities have actually issued fines.

According to Mobile police, there have been 53 curfew violation tickets issued since it went into effect. The Police Department did not readily have available how many of those tickets were $100, or if any of them cost more.

Stimpson and other experts believe the number of cases are slowing, and point to an availability of beds and ventilators at hospitals within the city as evidence that restrictive orders preventing small businesses from operating should be lifted.

Stimpson and Mobile County Public Health Officer Dr. Bert Eichold both believe that portions of the economy will reopen by May 1. He said he was “hopeful” that Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey will lift a “stay at home” order she implemented on April 3, which is also expiring on April 30.

“I think there will be an opening,” Stimpson said.

Stimpson said he participated in a video conference call with barbers and cosmetologists and listened to their concerns about restarting their businesses without having adequate personal protection equipment like N95 face masks and gloves.

“It’s one thing for the governor and the mayor to say, ‘you can go back to work’ but if you say, ‘you also need gloves,’ well, they aren’t available,” said Stimpson. “If you say that you need N95 masks, they aren’t available. We want to do our dead level best to make sure we’re not putting on onerous restrictions on those (who are attempting) to start back up.”