The state of Alabama is relaxing some of the emergency occupancy restrictions for businesses like restaurants, gyms and salons, Gov. Kay Ivey announced during a press conference Thursday.

Ivey extended the Safer at Home order established in March through Friday, Dec. 11. The previous order was set to expire Sunday. This includes extending the order to wear facial coverings and maintain social distancing when in public.

“I must admit, when we issued that first state or emergency back in March, most of us had hoped we would not even be having to worry about COVID in November,” Ivey said. “Yet, here we are eight months later, and our state, nation and world is still grappling with how to keep people safe while at the same time ensuring those who have jobs can keep on working, and businesses who have been sidelined can get back to work sooner rather than later.”

Ivey said businesses like salons and gyms can increase capacity so long as social distancing and facial coverings are maintained.

She said restaurants may increase capacity and have patrons closer than 6 feet apart if some kind of impermeable barrier, like plexiglass sheeting, is used to create partitions between tables.

Ivey said these relaxed restrictions are meant to “alleviate the burdens placed on our retail, small businesses and restaurant owners in time for holiday season.”

“The key to all this if you mask up and social distance, you can increase occupancy in your businesses,” she said.

Ivey said she is willing to keep the mask order in place while acknowledging “sooner rather than later it’s going to be up to each of us doing the right thing regardless of whether the government is mandating it or not.”

COVID-19 update

According to Ivey, more than 3,000 Alabamians have died due to coronavirus. She said the disease could prove to be a “deadly mix” when combined with the annual cold and flu season.

“This disease has disrupted our lives and livelihoods in significant ways,” she said.

State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris said Alabama is currently at 200,000 confirmed cases, around 4% of the population. He said the state has seen 22,000 new cases in the past 14 days.

Currently in Limestone County, there are 3,231 confirmed cases according to the Alabama Department of Public Health, including 449 new cases in the last 14 days. There have been 36 Limestone County deaths attributed to COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic.