By Brent Johnson and Len Melisurgo | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
As New Jersey kicks off Memorial Day weekend with open — but socially distanced — parks and beaches, officials on Friday announced 146 new deaths attributed to the coronavirus and 1,394 new positive test results in the state, though Gov. Phil Murphy says the outbreak here continues to slow 11 weeks after it started.
The Garden State has now reported 10,985 known deaths attributed to COVID-19, with at least 152,719 cases confirmed since the first positive test was announced March 4.
New York is the only American state with more coronavirus deaths and cases than New Jersey, a state of 9 million residents.
When the numbers are combined, New York and New Jersey account for almost 42 percent of all the COVID-19 deaths reported across the United States, according to public data.
Still, officials note the number of daily deaths, cases and hospitalizations continues to drop. This is the 16th straight day the Garden State has reported fewer than 2,000 new cases and the fifth straight day the state has reported fewer than 200 new deaths.
”Every trend we need to see to move along our road back we are seeing,” Murphy said Friday morning during his daily press briefing in Trenton. “Every key indicator is down from the peak, and the bad days are just as often followed by and equal, if not better, good days.”
As the numbers have fallen, Murphy has begun to gradually pull back the near-lockdown restrictions he installed over the last two months. He has allowed parks to reopen, non-essential businesses to offer curbside services, and says beaches, boardwalks and lakes can be open with social-distancing guidelines starting Friday — the unofficial kickoff to summer.
On Thursday, Murphy said more businesses — including gyms, hair salons and barber shops — may be allowed to reopen with guidelines “in a matter of weeks.”
And during Friday’s briefing, Murphy announced he’s allowing more people to gather outdoors, up to a maximum of 25, just in time for Memorial Day weekend. Indoor gatherings remain limited to 10 people.
This does not include outdoor dining or graduation ceremonies, he said. But it does include outdoor church gatherings and fitness classes, his office said.
In addition, Murphy is allowing public and private recreational campgrounds to reopen.
He stressed that visitors must still practice social distancing and are “strongly recommended” to wear face coverings.
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