Vicksburg extending COVID-19 proclamation for another month

Vicksburg is extending its COVID-19 proclamation for another month effective immediately.

The current proclamation expired at 8 a.m. Friday. Warren County has a similar proclamation that is in force through Feb. 1.

No fundamental changes to the proclamation have been made to the extension, which will run through Tuesday, Feb. 16. Vicksburg’s restrictions include wearing face masks in most public venues and recommendations for social distancing in addition to limiting the number of people in many businesses to slow the spread of the virus.

As of Thursday, Warren County has reported a cumulative total of 3,346 COVID-19 cases and 92 deaths since late March when the first case was confirmed in the county. With 603 new cases reported in January so far, the county is on track to have more than 1,300 cases by the end of the month, potentially making it the worst month for new cases since the crisis began. At around the half-way point in the month, the county has reported 14 deaths in January, two-thirds of the 21 deaths reported in December and August, which have tied for the worst months to-date for COVID-19 deaths.

The extension is scheduled for approval by Vicksburg Board of Mayor and Aldermen at its next scheduled meeting Tuesday.

The Vicksburg Daily News will publish the full-text version of the updated proclamation as soon as possible.