CAYCE, S.C. — The City of Cayce has extended its mask ordinance through the end of March due to the ongoing threat caused by the coronavirus.
The city's council voted unanimously at their meeting Wednesday night to keep the current face coverings rule in place through March 29. It could expire automatically after that date or council could extend it or repeal it before then.
The ordinance, first passed in July, requires that masks or coverings be worn in places open to the general public, within the City Limits. This includes grocery stores and pharmacies. It also requires employees of restaurants, bars, retail, establishments, salons, grocery stores, and pharmacies to wear face coverings at any time there is face-to-face interaction with the public.
Many other jurisdictions in South Carolina have passed face covering rules.
“While there are still a lot of unknowns about this deadly virus, especially the new strands and the unfolding of the vaccination plan, we do know that we want to keep businesses open and our children in school," said Cayce Mayor Elise Partin in a statement. "In order to do that for our Cayce businesses and Cayce families, we have to keep safety precautions in place. Wearing a mask and maintaining social distance is vital to stopping the spread. Prior to our Council voting on this ordinance, we talked with the top medical experts and scientists to cut through the rhetoric and find out the facts so that we can make the best decisions for our City.”
South Carolina saw 2,621 new confirmed cases of the virus Wednesday, according to SCDHEC. While the trend over the last 10 days has been downward, the overall case numbers, hospitalizations, and deaths are still well above the levels seen at any other time during the pandemic.
The state began vaccinating people with the new COVID-19 vaccine in December, but the rollout has been slow, and it will take months until most residents in the state are vaccinated.
[The graphic below shows the trend in daily COVID-19 cases since the start of the pandemic.]
