By Brent Johnson and Len Melisurgo for NJ.com
As the state took a big — but cautious — step forward by allowing parks and golf courses to reopen, officials Saturday reported another 2,912 new positive tests for the coronavirus and 205 additional deaths in New Jersey.
That brings the statewide total to at least 123,717 cases, including at least 7,742 deaths attributed to COVID-19, since the outbreak began March 4.
“The new case numbers are starting to rise again,” Gov. Phil Murphy said Saturday afternoon during his daily press briefing in Trenton.
Murphy also said this has been “as tough a week as it relates to fatalities as we have had” in New Jersey, home to the second-most coronavirus cases and deaths among American states, after New York.
During each of the past two days, New Jersey reported more COVID-19 deaths than New York, but on Saturday, the Garden State’s new one-day fatality number was lower than its neighboring state.
Murphy said the uptick in numbers may be because more people are being tested in the state. He and other officials also said the rate of infection continues to slow and the number of hospitalizations has continuously dropped over the last few weeks.
The new numbers were announced as New Jersey enters its seventh week of Murphy’s orders for residents to stay home and for non-essential businesses to close to help fight the virus’ spread. Unemployment and business losses have been widespread in that time.
But Murphy enacted his first major change Saturday morning, bringing a return to some sense of normalcy, as state parks, county parks and golf courses were allowed to reopen at dawn — with some restrictions — for the first time since early April.
Park visitors are still required to practice social distancing to protect against the virus, and the governor said police would be patrolling parks to make sure they comply. If things go poorly, Murphy said, he might close parks and golf courses again. But if the reopening goes well, that could lead to more restrictions being lifted.
Murphy said the reports from parks have been “so far so good.”
“We are smart, we have all followed best practices, and together we are flattening the curves, and we are making progress,” he said. But if we hear reports of people not taking either their health or the health, maybe even more importantly, of other parkgoers more seriously, we will not hesitate — I don’t say this with any joy — to close them again.”
“I want everyone to enjoy this extraordinary weekend,” Murphy added. “But enjoy it responsibly. And if we do this — and I know we can — we’ll be able to move forward.”
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