Oak Park declares state of emergency, orders residents to shelter in place

Oak Park will require all residents to shelter in place for at least two weeks, the first Illinois municipality to do so in an effort to contain the spread of COVID-19.

Mayor Anan Abu-Taleb declared a local state of emergency on Wednesday evening, hours after the village reported its first case of the virus. Along with the declaration, Oak Park Public Health Director Mike Charley issued a public order that will require all residents to shelter in place starting this Friday through Friday, April 3.

Exemptions include traveling to businesses that provide essential services such as grocery stores, banks, pharmacies, restaurants for delivery and pick up only and medical service providers.

“The nature of the emergency is the spread of the COVID-19 disease in the village and extraordinary measures must be taken to protect the public health, safety and welfare of the residents of the village,” Abu-Taleb said.

The Cook County village has a population of 52,265. On Monday, San Francisco city and county announced a shelter-in-place order, and several other cities, including New York, are weighing similar action.

Gov. JB Pritzker said Wednesday he was not yet planning to implement a full shelter-in-place order for the entire state.

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