Columbia passes stay-at-home order to halt spread of coronavirus

Residents of South Carolina’s capital city are being asked to stay home as much as possible to avoid spreading the coronavirus, under a plan released to the public on Thursday.

Columbia City Council approved a shelter-in-place ordinance on Thursday that requires city residents to stay indoors unless absolutely necessary.

The ordinance goes into effect at 12:01 a.m. Sunday. It requires residents to stay at home and avoid public streets, sidewalks and other public places, as well as businesses, unless they are conducting an “essential service.”

But the rules stop far short of stopping everyone from going outdoors. The ordinance specifies a long list of “essential services,” include food services and groceries, public transportation, manufacturing operations, the news media, financial institutions such as banks and services such as homeless shelters.

Other exempted businesses include real estate brokers, plumbers and electricians, and dry cleaners. Residents will still be able to travel to and from these businesses or to work in one of them. Health care workers, public safety officers and first responders are also exempt.

In addition, “individual outdoor recreational activities” will be allowed, but large gatherings could be broken up by the police.

Mayor Steve Benjamin said Columbia has to work to continue to “flatten the curve” of new infections, which reached 59 in Richland County on Wednesday.

“When I put on one side the potential loss of human life, I can’t find anything that comes dramatically close to balancing that scale,” Benjamin said.

Benjamin said he’s heard some say if the death rate is 1 or 2%, then it’s “not worth the investment” of a prolonged business shutdown. “I could not disagree more.”

But Councilman Daniel Rickenmann said the wide range of businesses exempted from the ordinance means it won’t have a major impact, except for the small businesses that will be closed due to the ordinance, such as gyms, hair salons and nail salons.

“The lady who cuts my hair can’t see anyone, but 4,000 people go to Walmart,” he said.

But Councilwoman Tameika Isaac Devine said she is concerned about the possibility of medical facilities being overwhelmed without a reduction in the growth of cases. Councilman Will Brennan said more action is still needed to bring the virus under control.

“I want to thank all the citizens who have been doing their part, but not everybody’s doing that,” Brennan said. “The next 14 days is every important to public health.”

The ordinance was approved 6-1, with Rickenmann the only dissenting vote.

The 14-day order will be revisited at the end of those two weeks, Benjamin said in a press conference after the vote, at which time council members will be able to make further decisions with additional data.

Benjamin also said city leaders are considering a contractual agreement that would allow the city to add new efforts to test for the virus, in addition to what local health care providers already are doing.

Columbia is the second South Carolina city to adopt a stay-at-home order. Charleston became the first city in South Carolina to adopt one on Tuesday, and other cities are considering similar measures.

S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster has resisted issuing a statewide shelter-in-place order, even as he has moved to close schools and required restaurants and bars to stop all services except take-out options.

The ordinance also reiterates a requirement for restaurants to cease dine-in services. It also requires residents in essential businesses or service areas to maintain a 6-foot “social distance” from each other.

“It is imperative that residents and non-residents of this great city shelter at home, unless providing or requiring an essential service,” the ordinance reads.

The action will “control outbreaks, minimizes the risk to the public, maintains the health and safety of the people of Columbia, and limits the spread of infection in our communities and within the health care delivery system.”

The ordinance also allows for fines to be issued for violating the shelter-in-place ordinance.

Columbia issued a citywide curfew just last week that stops anyone from being out between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. The new ordinance doesn’t go as far as extending that curfew throughout the day, as many businesses will continue to operate.

A spokesperson for the Columbia Police Department told The State that as of Wednesday, police have issued 50 warnings during the curfew times, and two $500 citations have been issued to people breaking the curfew.

Reporter Sarah Ellis contributed to this story.

This story was originally published March 26, 2020 at 2:13 PM.