During the week leading up to Memorial Day, Santa Barbara County averaged 13 new COVID-19 cases per day. Now, the county has an average of 121 new cases per day.
2nd District Supervisor Gregg Hart had to repeat those figures during a press conference Friday to let them sink in. The state requirement for a county Santa Barbara’s size is an average of eight new cases per day — today’s new case count is more than 15 times that. Hart was adamant, though, that the way forward is to continue to educate and stick to basic pandemic protocol.
“The strategy remains the same,” Hart said. “Wear a mask; stay six feet apart; wash your hands; limit contacts. We can reduce the spread of the virus in half by the end of August if we all work together.”