Lightfoot Calls on Chicagoans to Remain on Guard Against COVID-19 Even as Reopening Looms – NBC Chicago

With Chicago preparing to move into Phase Three of its
phased reopening plan next week, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot is imploring city
residents to keep up their guard against coronavirus.

During prepared remarks on Saturday, Lightfoot said that
city residents have helped to slow the spread of the illness through their
efforts so far, and expressed hope that they could continue to do even as more
businesses and recreational activities are allowed to reopen and resume.

“For the last eight weeks we’ve all been focused on trying
to save lives as a result of the spread of this terrible COVID-19 virus, and we’re
starting to see the fruits of those labors, which is why we’re going to be
slowly opening up the city of Chicago,” she said. “A lot of work and energy has
gone into this, not just on the part of city workers but on the part of individual
Chicagoans have stood tall in this incredible, stressful, difficult, fearful
moment. The progress we’ve made on the various health metrics is directly a
result of all the work and sacrifice of individual Chicagoans, and I want to
make sure all that work isn’t for naught.”

According to data from the Illinois Department of Public
Health, 44,666 cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in the city of Chicago since
the pandemic began, and 2,075 deaths have been attributed to the virus within
city limits.

Even with those numbers, city officials believe that the
state’s stay-at-home order and the city’s enforcement of that order have helped
to flatten the curve of new cases and hospitalizations in the city, and as a
result, Chicago will move into Phase Three of its reopening plan on Wednesday.

Despite that move forward, Lightfoot cautioned that
coronavirus is still a present threat, and that adhering to social distancing
guidelines and wearing facial coverings will be key to preventing a resurgence
of the virus.

“COVID-19 hasn’t disappeared because we set June 3 as a date
to cautiously reopen,” she said. “It’s very much a part of our present, and it
will be for the foreseeable future. We must continue to be diligent.”

Beginning June 3, a variety of Chicago businesses will be
allowed to reopen with social distancing and other guidelines in place,
including hair salons, non-essential retailers, manufacturing sites and
childcare facilities. Restaurants and bars will be allowed to open outdoor
seating areas as well, in accordance with state guidelines.