Despite Relaxed COVID-19 Restrictions, Many Plan To Stay At Home
Rebecca Davis of Birmingham, owner of the Hawaiian shave ice food truck Ono Ice, would have opened by now, but COVID-19 prevented her from doing that. Gov. Kay Ivey’s revised coronavirus restrictions allow restaurants and bars to continue providing curbside service only. And Davis is relieved.
“I just don’t think we’re in a place right now where that would be safe. And I just don’t see how those businesses could operate safely at this point,” she said.
That includes her own business. Some food trucks are operating, but Davis said she’s going to wait at least another few weeks before venturing out.
“I will start reassessing that now and probably start going out in mid-May and see how it is,” she said. “I just wanted to give it a little more time and to think about how to operate safely.”
Same goes for Enisa Banks Perez, a stay-at-home mother of three in Birmingham’s Eastlake neighborhood. To her, Ivey’s order represents a safer middle ground.
“With all the pressure of the states around us, this is actually a really good balance,” Perez said.
Some nearby states this week began to lift stay-at-home orders, including Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina.
Amy Robertson Boyd of Homewood said she’ll be watching coronavirus case numbers in those states closely. She said she’s pleased that Ivey’s new order gives about two weeks before a complete reopening.
“Personally I’m not sure that is long enough,” she said.
Retailers can open at 50% capacity under Alabama’s eased restrictions. But Boyd said she and her family will stick to shopping for necessities such as groceries only.
Perez said not much will change for her family in the coming weeks.
“We’re kind of just going to stay at home like we’ve been doing, and when we want to go outside and we get a little restless we go in the back yard and play games or have a picnic or repaint,” she said.
She has a backyard luau planned in the near future.
The governor’s order expires May 15th.
Wife of South Korea’s jailed ex-President Yoon arrested over corruption allegations
Investigators say the former president and first lady exerted undue influence on the conservative People Power Party to nominate a specific candidate during a 2022 election.
Danielle Spencer, who played little sister Dee on ‘What’s Happening!!,’ dies at 60
A family spokesperson said Spencer died Monday after battling cancer for several years. As Dee, she was a deadpan, wisecracking sister on What's Happening!! Spencer later became a veterinarian.
White House calls for a ‘comprehensive review’ of eight Smithsonian museums
The effort is focused on bringing the organization in line with President Trump's cultural directives ahead of the country's 250th anniversary celebrations.
Trump official tells census workers Congress has final say over the count, not Trump
Days after the president's call for a "new" census, the top official overseeing the Census Bureau told employees that Congress, not Trump, has final say over the tally, NPR has exclusively learned.
‘Alien: Earth’ is one of the best shows so far this year
The TV prequel to the Alien movies calls back to the best elements of those original films — including questions about corporate exploitation and technological advancements.
State Department slashes its annual reports on human rights
Required by Congress, the reports no longer single out things like rigged elections or sexual violence against children as human rights violations.
