SF Faces Purple Tier as COVID-19 Cases Surge

San Francisco could be forced to enter the more restrictive "purple tier" of the state's reopening blueprint by this Sunday as it faces a spike in COVID-19 cases.

That means the city would join most other counties facing an overnight curfew, which the state announced Thursday. Currently, 41 counties, which represents about 94% of California’s population, are in the purple tier and will be under a limited stay-at-home order from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. beginning Saturday, Nov. 21 and lasting for a month. Six Bay Area counties are currently in the purple tier.

San Francisco is currently in the less restrictive red tier, but just three weeks ago the city was in the least restrictive yellow tier.

"This is indicative of how fast the virus is spreading in our city," said Dr. Grant Colfax, director of the San Francisco Department of Public Health.

Colfax said weekly coronavirus cases have nearly tripled over the past month. “But we can change the course of this surge," he said. “We have done this twice and we can do it again. After all, we are San Francisco and we have shown the country how to fight COVID.”

If San Francisco does enter the purple tier, indoor gyms would close, as would museums, movie theaters and houses of worship. Retail businesses that remain open would face more limited capacity.

Asked what is triggering the surge in San Francisco, Colfax said he wasn't sure, but people may have become complacent with the city's relative low number of cases. He also said more businesses reopening likely led to increased spread of the virus.

Colfax warned that if San Francisco continues on this trajectory, models show the city’s hospitals could become overwhelmed, with hundreds of people in hospitals by the end of December or early January.

Colfax urged people to avoid traveling or gathering with those outside their household for next week's Thanksgiving holiday.

— Tara Siler (@SilerTara)