Phoenix, Tucson order closures of bars, restaurants
Associated Press | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 years, 10 months AGO
A concourse at Sky Harbor Airport is unusually empty as airlines cut flights due to the coronavirus outbreak, Tuesday, March 17, 2020, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Passenger jets from Delta Airlines lined up for storage at Pinal Airpark in Pinal County, north of Tucson, Ariz., on March 16, 2020. (Rebecca Sasnett/Arizona Daily Star)
A traveller uses hand sanitizer from a dispenser at Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix, Tuesday, March 17, 2020. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Empty luggage carts sit on the tarmac along with a Southwest Airlines plane at Sky Harbor Airport, Tuesday, March 17, 2020, in Phoenix, as airlines cut flights due to the coronavirus outbreak. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Chairs have been removed from an outdoor patio as a guest arrives for take-out at a restaurant Tuesday, March 17, 2020, in Phoenix. Phoenix, Tucson and Flagstaff are ordering bars, gyms and other indoor facilities to close immediately and restaurants to offer to-go service only in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus. (AP Photo/Matt York)
Yuma High School cafeteria worker Maria Rubio, second from left, shows a young boy how many different flavors of milk he has to choose from as an older boy tries to help out Tuesday morning, March 17, 2020, in Yuma, Ariz. Schools in the Yuma area are providing breakfasts and lunches for school-age children while the campuses are closed because of the new coronavirus. Looking on are Carmen Corona, left, and Maria Jaramillo, also Yuma High School cafeteria workers. (Randy Hoeft/The Yuma Sun via AP)
George Washington Carver Elementary School cafeteria worker Luz Barajas carries sack lunches and breakfasts to a car in the drive-through lane in the school parking lot Tuesday morning, March 17, 2020, in Yuma, Ariz. Schools in the Yuma area are providing breakfasts and lunches for school-age children who otherwise might have to do without while campuses are closed because of the novel coronavirus. (Randy Hoeft/The Yuma Sun via AP)
George Washington Carver Elementary School cafeteria worker Luz Barajas, center, carries sack lunches and breakfasts to a waiting caras Juanita Chavez prepares more meals at the drive-through lane in the school parking lot Tuesday morning, March 17, 2020, in Yuma, Ariz.Children had the option of walking up and being served, or arriving by car with an adult. Schools in the Yuma area are providing breakfasts and lunches for school-age children who otherwise might have to do without while campuses are closed because of the coronavirus. (Randy Hoeft/The Yuma Sun via AP)
George Washington Carver Elementary School cafeteria worker Luz Barajas puts juice boxes in prepared sack lunches and breakfasts in the school parking lot Tuesday morning, March 17, 2020, in Yuma, Ariz. Children had the option of walking up and being served, or arriving by car with an adult. Schools in the Yuma area are providing breakfasts and lunches for school-age children who otherwise might have to do without while campuses are closed because of the coronavirus. (Randy Hoeft/The Yuma Sun via AP)
PHOENIX (AP) — Phoenix and Tucson joined Flagstaff on Tuesday in ordering bars, gyms and other indoor facilities to close immediately and restaurants to offer to-go service only in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
Restaurants will have until 8 p.m. to convert to drive-thru, delivery or pick-up only, the mayors of Phoenix and Tucson said, a day after Flagstaff's mayor was the first to make the decision with an official proclamation.
Numerous restaurant and bar owners in Phoenix and Tucson had already closed or converted to take-out and delivery operations. Essential businesses like grocery stores, pharmacies, food banks and airports remain open across Arizona.
The closures came as state health officials identified two more coronavirus cases, including the first on the Arizona portion of the Navajo reservation in Navajo County.
The Navajo Nation, a sovereign tribal government, already had declared an emergency on the reservation, closed tribal parks and limited travel for tribal employees. On Tuesday, the tribe announced it will close its casinos — one east of Flagstaff and three in New Mexico — until April 6.
“We have health and emergency experts who have been planning and preparing for this situation for several weeks,” Navajo President Jonathan Nez said in a statement.
Arizona has 20 cases, the rest of which are in the lower half of the state across Maricopa, Pima, Pinal and Graham counties.
Republican Gov. Doug Ducey has shut down schools statewide but didn't extend the order to businesses.
Flagstaff, a mountainous city of about 70,000, is enforcing the order on businesses beginning at 8 p.m. Mayor Coral Evans announced the decision late Monday after she declared a state of emergency.
No coronavirus cases have been reported from Flagstaff and Coconino County, which is about 140 miles (225 kilometers) north of Phoenix. Evans said the proclamation was necessary “for the protection of life and property.” It will be in effect until April 1.
The Arizona-based supermarket chain Bashas', which also owns Food City and AJ's Fine Foods, announced stores would open an hour early for shoppers age 65 and older only starting Wednesday. Customers will be permitted to bring one caretaker if needed.
Near Tucson, several airlines have started to park planes at the Pinal Airpark amid travel restrictions and declining demand, the Arizona Daily Star reported.
Ten Delta jets landed Monday at the airpark used mainly to store older jets so their parts can be removed. Another 13 aircraft from the Atlanta-based airline were scheduled to arrive at the storage and maintenance facility Wednesday, according to air traffic website FlightAware. It was unclear how long the jets will stay, unused.
For most people, the coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.
The vast majority of people recover from the virus. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover.
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