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Newark Joins Forces With Surrounding Municipalities In Seven Day COVID-19 Lockdown

Alexandra Hill
/
News

Four New Jersey officials, East Orange Mayor Ted Green, Orange Mayor Dwayne Warren, Irvington Mayor Tony Vauss, and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, have joined forces to announce a series of new measures to combat the spread of COVID-19.

The first of those measures is a complete seven-day lockdown. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka says all non-emergency travel between them will be barred with joint police units patrolling their shared borders. Violators will be issued summonses and could face legal action.

“We want to make sure that we are consistent, because we know we travel back and forth. Like east orange is like Newark, and Newark is like Irvington, and Irvington is like Orange, and we have relatives, cousins, uncles, family, and we go back and forth in these municipalities, and we’re carrying the virus around with us back and forth.”

The joint police forces have already stopped more than 15 hundred vehicles for non-essential travel. When asked if the measure is taking it the statewide stay at home order to far, Baraka says its not taking it far enough, adding that outside of universal nationwide testing, strict quarantine is the only way to beat the virus.

“We govern that especially in these areas so we can identify who actually has it and stop them from spreading it. We’re not doing that, and people are very cavalier about moving back and forth because we think we’re invincible, and spreading it so I don’t think its enough. As long as we save peoples lives that’s all I’m concerned about."

Baraka says the four municipalities have over half the cases in Essex County. The lockdown will be re-evaluated on April 7th

Alexandra Hill began her work with WBGO in June of 2012 in the news department. A graduate of the Rutgers Newark journalism program, Alexandra was also a student of WBGO News Director Doug Doyle. Alexandra has since become the lead general assignment reporter, afternoon news anchor, and producer of the award winning live call in show Newark Today. Since working for WBGO Alexandra has covered politics in and around Newark including the 2014 mayoral campaign of Mayor Ras Baraka as well as the senate campaigns of former Newark Mayor and now U.S. Senator Cory Booker in both 2013 and 2014. Alexandra also covers a host of human-interest stories, and has been recognized by the New York Association Of Black Journalists for her piece entitled Sheltering Newark’s Homeless.