Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam confirmed Monday that he expects to hold Northern Virginia out of the gradual phase one reopening of the rest of the state later this week, noting that more than 70 percent of new covid-19 cases in the state are now coming from the populous D.C. suburbs.
Northam had asked leaders from Northern Virginia to send him a formal request to maintain the tighter restrictions, and that he received the letter over the weekend from a group including Alexandria and the counties of Fairfax, Arlington, Prince William and Loudoun.
On Monday, the state announced 989 new coronavirus infections, 719 of them clustered in the suburbs bordering the District.
Local leaders in Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax County, Loudoun County and Prince William County issued a joint letter advising Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam that they are not ready to reopen. https://t.co/fE1sWrskg4
— NBCWashington (@nbcwashington) May 11, 2020
City officials in multiple jurisdictions in Northern Virginia issued a letter Sunday to Gov. Ralph Northam that they do not believe their region is ready to reopen given the criteria in his Phase 1 reopening plan.https://t.co/u0l8G6otKt
— NBCWashington (@nbcwashington) May 10, 2020