As Lynn deliberates, Revere acts in fight against coronavirus
Lynn and Revere have quickly earned the unfortunate distinction of leading the state’s latest coronavirus surge.
But while the two cities are experiencing a similar spike, marked by rising case numbers and a high positive test rate, their efforts to contain the virus have been noticeably different.
In Revere, Mayor Brian M. Arrigo has opted to take more of an aggressive approach to slow the spread by means of several new initiatives his office announced on Thursday.
Those initiatives include the formation of COVID-19 enforcement team, which will issue fines and citations to individuals and businesses that do not comply with the state’s limit on large gatherings. In addition, Revere parks and recreational sites that have been non-compliant with mask and group size requirements will be closed, according to Arrigo’s office.
“We’re in our fourth consecutive week with a positive test rate that’s more than three times the state average,” said Arrigo. “We’ve got to try something new to get people’s attention. This week, we are ramping up education and enforcement efforts.”
In Lynn, Mayor Thomas M. McGee said the city has been focused on its expanded testing and contact tracing efforts to determine what has been causing the spike, but is still deliberating as to whether to implement further restrictions.
“(We’re) working on a strategy of where to go,” said McGee. “Some communities have started (taking) further enforcement steps. We’re focused on the testing. With the data and what goes on over the weekend, we will see what is driving it, and will have a better idea on ways we want to directly address it.”
Although their approaches are different, it’s clear both cities are grappling with what Arrigo called an “alarming” trend over the past three weeks.
Lynn and Revere have the second and fourth highest positive test rates in the state, but aside from the technicality of two small towns skewing the results, the cities are leading the surge, according to the state Department of Public Health.
Lynn’s positive test rate of 7.09 percent is nearly five times the state average of 1.5 percent, while Revere’s rate of 5.4 percent is more than three times higher.
On Friday, Lynn reported 21 new cases and an additional death to bring the city’s total numbers to 4,437 cases and 112 deaths. The city has 644 active cases and 3,681 people have recovered from the virus.
Revere reported 12 new cases on Friday to bring the city’s total number of cases to 2,271. Ninety-four people have died and 2,061 have recovered.
McGee and the Public Health Director Michele Desmarais said the latest data indicates that house parties and outdoor barbecues appear to be the source of the problem in Lynn over the past several weeks.
But so far, efforts in Lynn have been focused on trying to educate the people involved in those gatherings to try to deter future parties, rather than taking enforcement action against them, according to Desmarais.
“We have been able to pinpoint that it is coming from social gatherings,” said Desmarais. “We do contact where the party was and we just try to educate them on: if you are having them, you need to properly social distance and wear a mask. If there is alcohol involved, it changes your judgment. So we really are trying to educate.”
However, if numbers continue to surge, McGee said the city will begin to issue fines of up to $500 per violation to individuals or businesses that are flouting restrictions on large gatherings.
Those locations will be contacted through the city’s law department with an eye toward enforcing Gov. Charlie Baker’s latest orders, which limit outdoor gatherings to 50 people and indoor gatherings to no more than 25.
“From what the past 10 or 14 days has indicated, it doesn’t seem like it’s business-driven,” said McGee. “It seems like it’s people having larger gatherings at their homes. People need to understand this is unacceptable and this is causing a further spread in our community.
“If there are house parties going on, we will take action subject to what the governor’s orders allow, and we will take a look at further action.”
But Desmarais said additional enforcement is difficult, as the city can’t violate the rights of its residents.
“We can’t really impinge on people’s freedom, on people’s private residences, but if there was a way people could just be considerate of people by wearing a mask, social distancing and not having these family parties,” she said. “COVID has not taken the summer off. COVID is still present in our community.”
McGee and Desmarais plan to meet with Lynn Police and the city’s emergency management team early next week to decide what further steps should be taken.
While Lynn is planning further deliberations, Revere has started to implement some of its new initiatives this week.
On Friday, two basketball courts at Harry Della Russo Stadium were shut down by the city, according to Arrigo, and more city-owned parks and playgrounds could follow if officials find that people are gathering on those sites in large groups without masks.
Arrigo said the newly established COVID-19 enforcement team will begin to go into neighborhoods across the city to have direct conversations with people, distribute masks and connect them with other resources.
Revere will also begin to “step up its enforcement” of the governor’s revised order on social gathering limits, with plans to issue $490 fines to violators.
To that end, the city is also working with the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission to increase oversight at establishments across the city, and with the state about how to work together along Revere Beach, Arrigo said.
“It’s frustrating,” said Arrigo. “People saw how bad things were back in April and May and the actions we’re taking now is to avoid being back in that terrible position. We’ve had 94 residents die from this virus, and hundreds more that have been severely impacted, and so to see people acting with complete disregard for that is frustrating.
“People want to send their kids back into classrooms, they want to be able to play sports, they want to be able to get together with their friends. None of that can happen if residents are out in groups of 25-30-50 without masks in the midst of an international pandemic.”
McGee and Desmarais echoed those sentiments, in terms of the summer spike stemming from people letting their guard down, and in some instances, just being tired of adhering to virus restrictions.
While some people may want to take some time off from the rules over the summer, McGee said COVID-19 is not taking a vacation and people have to continue to be diligent about wearing masks and social distancing.
Even if additional protocols and restrictions are put in place, such as business or park closures, Desmarais is doubtful that people would stop holding the social gatherings that city officials believe are causing the spike.
“I think people are definitely tired of following the rules,” said Desmarais. “A lot of times people aren’t receptive to directives coming from the government until it hits them where it hurts.”
Elsewhere, 12 new cases were reported in Peabody (1,215 cases, 175 deaths) on Friday, but numbers remained the same in Lynnfield (109 cases, 11 deaths), Marblehead (261 cases, 30 deaths), Saugus (628 cases, 39 deaths), and Swampscott (153 cases, 10 deaths).
