Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Face Masks Required in Fresno County, Supervisor Brandau Pushes Back
TLBBHMAP3-U010ALB5ANM-348f959abae2-512-300x300-1
By Jim Jakobs, Digital Producer
Published 4 years ago on
May 20, 2020

Share

Editor’s note: This story has been updated. Read the new story at this link.

Original story:  

Dr. Rais Vohra, interim Fresno County health officer, signed an order requiring face masks starting Friday.

“All residents shall use cloth masks or equivalent face covering while indoors at work, while visiting a business, or while coming into close contact with someone who is not a family member, in accordance with CDC guidelines to prevent (the) spread of respiratory droplets when physical distancing cannot be maintained,” states the order, which was amended Monday.

District 2 Fresno County Supervisor Steve Brandau says the order goes too far and he is vowing to fight it.

The Centers for Disease Control recommend cloth face coverings as an “additional, voluntary public health measure” to contain the spread of CVOID-19.

However, the city of Los Angeles, made cloth masks mandatory for anyone shopping or working in early April.

Fines and Jail Time?

The order encourages voluntary compliance but notes that violations are subject to “fine, imprisonments, or both.”

Vohra’s order comes the week following Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims’ announcement that her deputies would not enforce COVID-19 lockdown and social distancing orders.

“We do not stop the public to find out what they’re doing when they’re not sheltering in place. We don’t ask those questions, we don’t ask if they’re ‘essential,’ ” Mims told PowerTalk radio talk-show host Trevor Carey.

Vohra said the order is to help slow the spread of novel coronavirus. Specifically, situations where social distancing is not maintained due to social spacing or professional conditions.

Adults with respiratory illnesses, certain medical conditions, and children under 12 years old are excused from face coverings due to suffocation risk. The order says they should still comply with social distancing of at least 6 feet from others outside their households.

Through 3:45 p.m. Tuesday, Fresno County had 1,287 confirmed coronavirus cases, 160 hospitalizations and 17 deaths.

The county is seeking clearance from state officials to proceed with opening up the economy — including opening dine-in restaurants and all retail stores.

Fresno County Supervisor Pushes Back

Brandau responded to Vohra’s order in a Facebook video.

“The Board of Supervisors, in conversations, has made clear that we do not support that (mandatory face masks), and yet it’s in the order,” Brandau said.

Brandau said that board members are working behind the scenes to amend the order. It should be voluntary, not mandatory, he said.

He believes the order is unfair to small businesses: “If you put those restrictions upon them, some customers are simply going to order those products online.”

In addition, board chairman Buddy Mendes told ABC30’s Corin Hoggard that Vohra’s order would be amended to make the masks voluntary.

https://www.facebook.com/Steve4Fresno/videos/599560410915768/

 

[covid-19-tracker]

DON'T MISS

Fresno Team Makes Low-Budget Horror Flicks Look Like Multi-Million-Dollar Productions

DON'T MISS

4B Movement: After the Election, a Call for Women to Swear Off Men

DON'T MISS

Homeowners’ Effort to Leave Sierra Unified Ends With County Ed Rejection

DON'T MISS

Will Terance Frazier’s Nonprofit Exit Granite Park or Fight?

DON'T MISS

Fresno Crash Sends Pickup Into Tree, Dark Tint Cited as Cause

DON'T MISS

November Has Scattered Cool Temps, Rain Showers for Fresno

DON'T MISS

Beyoncé Makes Grammy History With ‘Cowboy Carter,’ Leading 2025 Nominations

DON'T MISS

Macklin Celebrini, NHL’s Youngest Player, Scores on Marc-Andre Fleury, League’s Oldest

DON'T MISS

Ramsey, Beckham Return to SoFi Stadium When the Struggling Dolphins Visit the Streaking Rams

DON'T MISS

San Francisco’s First Black Female Mayor Concedes to Levi Strauss Heir

UP NEXT

San Francisco’s First Black Female Mayor Concedes to Levi Strauss Heir

UP NEXT

FBI Thwarts Iranian Murder-for-Hire Plan Targeting Donald Trump

UP NEXT

Southern California Wildfire Destroys 132 Structures as Officials Look for Fierce Winds to Subside

UP NEXT

Wave of Racist Texts After Election Prompts FBI Scrutiny

UP NEXT

Americans Seek Fresh Start Abroad as Election Sparks Expat Interest

UP NEXT

California Beat Trump in Court His First Term. It’s Preparing New Cases for His Second.

UP NEXT

Don’t Expect Kamala Harris’ Loss to Boost Gavin Newsom’s Presidential Prospects

UP NEXT

California Governor Calls Special Session to Protect Liberal Policies From Trump Presidency

UP NEXT

Trump’s Deportation Plan Brings Fear and Sadness at CA Border

UP NEXT

Thousands Ordered to Evacuate as Powerful Wind-Fed Wildfire Burns Homes in Southern California

Will Terance Frazier’s Nonprofit Exit Granite Park or Fight?

3 hours ago

Fresno Crash Sends Pickup Into Tree, Dark Tint Cited as Cause

4 hours ago

November Has Scattered Cool Temps, Rain Showers for Fresno

4 hours ago

Beyoncé Makes Grammy History With ‘Cowboy Carter,’ Leading 2025 Nominations

5 hours ago

Macklin Celebrini, NHL’s Youngest Player, Scores on Marc-Andre Fleury, League’s Oldest

5 hours ago

Ramsey, Beckham Return to SoFi Stadium When the Struggling Dolphins Visit the Streaking Rams

5 hours ago

San Francisco’s First Black Female Mayor Concedes to Levi Strauss Heir

6 hours ago

FBI Thwarts Iranian Murder-for-Hire Plan Targeting Donald Trump

6 hours ago

Israeli Soccer Fans Were Attacked in Amsterdam. The Violence Was Condemned as Antisemitic

6 hours ago

Longtime Dodgers Ace Clayton Kershaw Is on the Mend After 2 Surgeries

6 hours ago

Fresno Team Makes Low-Budget Horror Flicks Look Like Multi-Million-Dollar Productions

Steven Sanchez Entertainment The local independent horror film “Drive Back” was released to streaming services like Apple TV an...

17 mins ago

17 mins ago

Fresno Team Makes Low-Budget Horror Flicks Look Like Multi-Million-Dollar Productions

Following the results of Tuesday's election, Jada Mevs, a 25-year-old from Washington, D.C., is urging women to take action by signing up for self-defense classes, deleting dating apps, getting on birth control, and investing in vibrators, as part of a growing response to the election of Donald Trump for a second term and the failure of abortion rights referendums. (Shutterstock)
1 hour ago

4B Movement: After the Election, a Call for Women to Swear Off Men

2 hours ago

Homeowners’ Effort to Leave Sierra Unified Ends With County Ed Rejection

3 hours ago

Will Terance Frazier’s Nonprofit Exit Granite Park or Fight?

4 hours ago

Fresno Crash Sends Pickup Into Tree, Dark Tint Cited as Cause

4 hours ago

November Has Scattered Cool Temps, Rain Showers for Fresno

5 hours ago

Beyoncé Makes Grammy History With ‘Cowboy Carter,’ Leading 2025 Nominations

5 hours ago

Macklin Celebrini, NHL’s Youngest Player, Scores on Marc-Andre Fleury, League’s Oldest

Search

Send this to a friend