Live updates April 26: Mississippi has 193 new COVID-19 cases with 6 on the Coast

6 p.m.

Gov. Tate Reeves’ new shelter-in-place order goes into effect at 8 a.m. Monday. Read the details here.

1:30 p.m.

MSDH announced over 60,000 people have been tested for COVID-19 in the state — 11,591 by the Public Health Lab and 49,197 by hospitals and other providers, for a total of 60,788 Mississippians tested since the pandemic began.

11 a.m.

The Mississippi State Department of Health on Sunday reports 193 new coronavirus cases and 6 new deaths.

In the lower six counties of South Mississippi, there are 6 new cases and no new deaths.

Pearl River County has the biggest increase in cases for the Coast counties, with four new positive cases of COVID-19, while neighboring Hancock County has one new case.

Total cases in South Mississippi are:

• George — 11 (0 new)
• Hancock — 60 (1 new)
• Harrison — 158 (0 new)
• Jackson — 238 (1 new)
• Pearl River — 152 (4 new)
• Stone — 22 (0 new)

9 a.m.

Gov. Tate Reeves on Saturday night responded to critics asking why he didn’t wait for 14 days of declining numbers, as recommended by the White House:

“There are a lot of people asking why we did not wait for two full weeks of a downward trend in new cases before re-opening and replacing the strict Shelter In Place order. I want to explain the decision-making process that we went through.

Even as we’ve dramatically ramped up testing, the number of new cases we’ve found has grown much slower than we expected. We haven’t seen the rapid spike predicted by many.

Our testing is so robust, our numbers are so low, and our growth is so slow, that our health experts say it may take many weeks or months to see the number of new cases drop for two straight weeks. That’s a good thing.

It means we didn’t have the sharp peak that many states experienced. They shot up, right out of the gate, and will begin to decline more quickly because of that. Dr. Birx, Dr. Dobbs, and our health department tell me our data says we can safely start to shift our strict rules on all Mississippians. ...

This disease has not hit every American fairly. It is particularly cruel to some. And the economic damage has not hit every American fairly. It has been particularly cruel to the working class: Those people who work on their feet. ...

Wall Street and Hollywood will be fine. Mississippi small businesses and workers are not. That’s who has been asked to shoulder the country’s burden. It’s not fair, and it’s not right. We have to safely, quickly re-open. That’s what we’re starting to do.”

Saturday highlights:

▪ Dozens of Mississippi protesters drove around downtown Jackson on Saturday, honking horns and encircling the Governor’s Mansion in an effort to get Gov. Tate Reeves to fully reopen the state.

▪Another death was reported Saturday in Pearl River County, raising the death toll from coronavirus in South Mississippi to 32. This is the third consecutive day the toll has risen In Pearl River County. Saturday’s report showed 284 new cases and 12 deaths statewide.

▪ Coast Transit Authority announced it will reestablish the fixed route bus service Tuesday, April 28, with some restrictions. All routes will run from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday. There will not be any service on Sunday.

▪ D’Iberville has rescinded its stay-at-home order and curfew and will comply with the governor’s safer at home order starting Monday, the city announced Saturday. Businesses are allowed to open at the owners’ discretion, but will have to limit the number of customers. Restaurants and bars are still limited to curbside, drive-thru or delivery. Fitness and exercise gyms, dance studios, clubs, tattoo parlors, spas, salons, barber shops, and all other personal care and grooming facilities shall remain closed.

▪ Jackson County beaches will open Monday and be patrolled by constables. Jackson County Tax Collector offices will open Monday only for new vehicle and mobile home registrations. All other services can be completed online, by phone or drop box. The Tax Assessor Office will be opening to process Homestead Exemption Applications only.

This story was originally published April 26, 2020 at 12:01 PM.