Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said at a Thursday news conference that the state is banning gatherings with 500 people or more to prevent spread of the coronavirus. The number of confirmed cases in New York State is now 328, with 112 new cases. Credit: Ny Gov Office

New York State imposed on Thursday a ban on all gatherings with 500 people or more — a day that saw professional and college sports, the entertainment industry and cultural institutions take sweeping measures in an effort to slow the outbreak of coronavirus.

Broadway closed down; the NCAA canceled its March Madness basketball tournament; Major League Baseball suspended spring training and delayed opening day;  the NBA has suspended its season indefinitely; and the NHL is taking a pause in its season.

There are more than 125,000 confirmed cases of the virus and 4,600 deaths across the globe, according to the World Health Organization. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported 1,215 confirmed cases and 36 deaths in the United States as of Thursday.

Venues with a capacity of 500 or fewer throughout the state will be required to reduce maximum capacity to 50%, starting Friday, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo said.

He said the drastic steps were necessary.

“This is going to get worse before it gets better,” Cuomo said at a news conference in Albany, referring to the outbreak. “That was always the fact.”

The number of confirmed cases of the COVID-19 virus has grown to 328 in New York State. Of those, 112 are new since Wednesday.

On Thursday, as the number of confirmed coronairus cases continued to grow, NYC mayor Bill de Blasio signed a state of emergency declaration. Credit: Newsday / Matthew Chayes

Cuomo's order does not impact schools, hospitals, mass transit and nursing homes, he said. All nonmedical visitors will be barred from nursing homes, he said.

Halting visits to nursing homes, Cuomo said, “sounds very difficult … if you care about someone in a nursing home, the last thing you want is to endanger that person.”

Changes at warp speed

The sports world changed at warp speed Thursday, with one of the biggest events on the U.S. calendar, the college basketball tournament known popularly as March Madness, becoming the first mega-event to be scrubbed due to fear of spread of the coronavirus. Hofstra University’s men’s basketball team had secured a spot in the tournament.

Leaders at all levels of sports, including the NCAA, NBA, NHL, Major League Baseball, tennis and soccer, decided the risk of playing games with the threat of the virus hanging over them was too great despite the billions of dollars — to say nothing of the trophies, pride and once-in-a-lifetime experiences — hanging in the balance.

By late in the afternoon, the NCAA had scrapped all college winter and spring championships. The cancellation leaves a massive hole in American sports — from campuses across the country to a growing passel of sports-betting businesses that rely on college hoops money.

Broadway shows stopped production in the city until the week of April 13, "in support of the health and well-being of the theatergoing public, as well as those who work in the theatre industry," according to a statement on the website of The Broadway League.

“Broadway has the power to inspire, enrich and entertain, and together we are committed to making that vital spirit a reality," Charlotte St. Martin, president of the Broadway League, said in the statement. "Once our stages are lit again, we will welcome fans back with open arms so that they can continue to experience the joy, heart, and goodwill that our shows so passionately express every night.”

Some of the city's most popular and vaunted cultural centers are closing their doors and stopping performances.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art said in a statement it was closing all three of its locations — The Met Fifth Avenue, The Met Breuer, and The Met Cloisters — to support efforts to contain the virus and "undertake a thorough cleaning." There are no confirmed cases linked to the museum, officials said.

Carnegie Hall and the Metropolitan Opera have canceled all events through March 31.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said Barclays Center could be closed for an estimated six months.

The Archdiocese of New York said it would close elementary schools in its system Monday for at least a week.

Concerns about hospital beds

Cuomo said the focus was on cutting the density of people to slow the COVID-19 outbreak while making sure there were enough hospital beds to accommodate the most severely ill patients.

Cuomo said the state had authorized 28 labs to conduct testing for COVID-19 in an effort to step up testing. If the federal government approved automated COVID-19 testing at a national lab, the state could receive 5,000 results a day.

"The testing is not about what percentage of the population has coronavirus. You will never figure that out today," Cuomo said. "The testing is about what percent of those infected are hospitalized to determine the capacity we need in our hospital system."

Emergency declaration

De Blasio signed a state of emergency declaration as the city had identified 95 positive cases as of Thursday. That's an increase of more than 40 over Wednesday, the state Department of Health said.

De Blasio said that total number included 10 cases in the Bronx, 24 cases in Brooklyn, 25 in Manhattan, 17 in Queens and five in Staten Island. He called the numbers "striking and troubling."

There are 29 people in mandatory quarantine and 1,784 in voluntarily quarantine.

One bright spot, de Blasio said, was news that one person came out of mandatory quarantine for the virus.

The city is aiming to have 10% of municipal employees — about 35,000 — work from home and have another 20% work on staggered schedules.

"We will be at this for months and months; this is a battle we are going into — a long battle … We are going to lose some of our fellow New Yorkers," de Blasio said. "That, unfortunately, is inevitable."

He said he believes positive cases in the city will hit 1,000 next week.

Despite the day's gloomy news, de Blasio urged New Yorkers to keep living their lives.

When asked if he had advice for New Yorkers wanting to date in the era of coronavirus, he suggested they "exercise some smart rules."

"If you're sick, don't go on the date. If the date is sick, don't go on the date," de Blasio said. If you go, "You might keep a little bit more distance than you might have before," he suggested. "That's OK."

With AP

Closed, due to coronavirus

  • Broadway Shows — suspended until April 13
  • Carnegie Hall — all events canceled until March 31
  • Metropolitan Opera — all events canceled until March 31
  • Metropolitan Museum of Art — closed until further notice
  • NCAA March Madness Tournament — canceled
  • Major League Baseball — Spring training suspended, opening day delayed at least two weeks

SOURCES: Newsday research

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