Barber Kola Peavy trims customer Aaron Bolling's hair at the Barber Studio in Hattiesburg, Miss., Monday, May 11, 2020. Mississippi barber shops, beauty salons and gyms were starting to reopen Monday for the first time in weeks, with limits on the numbers of customers and other restrictions designed to slow the spread of the new coronavirus. (Cam Bonelli/Hattiesburg American via AP)
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi barbershops, beauty salons and gyms were starting to reopen Monday for the first time in weeks, with limits on the numbers of customers and other restrictions designed to slow the spread of the new coronavirus.
Tanisha Davis, a hair stylist with Platinum Cuts and Styles in Vicksburg, said Monday that the shop has been closed since March 23 and the weeks without work were “very tough.” She spent part of Monday deep-cleaning the shop and preparing to reopen Tuesday, with appointments lined up for days.
“I’m used to doing 10 to 15 heads, max, a day,” Davis said.
She said that will be greatly reduced after reopening because she can’t cut one customer’s hair while another waits for a chemical treatment to set, for example. She said she understands the need for regulations.
“It’s for our health and safety and our customers’ health and safety,” Davis said.
Gov. Tate Reeves has been gradually easing business restrictions that have been in place the past few weeks. Restaurants in most parts of the state have been allowed to reopen their dining rooms and patios since Thursday, after being limited to carry-out and delivery for more than a month. Some cities have kept tighter restrictions, and Reeves said that is allowed.
The governor’s “safer at home” order remains in place until May 25. It says people who are medically vulnerable should stay home. It suggests that people work from home, if possible, and maintain distance from others when they go out. It also limits the size of gatherings to 20 or fewer people.
The state Health Department said Monday that Mississippi — with a population of about 3 million — had at least 9,674 confirmed cases and 435 deaths from the coronavirus as of Sunday evening. That was an increase of 173 cases and five deaths from numbers the department reported the previous day.
The number of coronavirus infections is thought to be far higher because many people have not been tested, and studies suggest people can be infected with the virus without feeling sick. For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For others, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, the virus can cause severe symptoms and be fatal.
The Health Department said Monday that at least 95,885 coronavirus tests had been done in Mississippi as of Sunday. The department said at least 1,223 cases of the virus had been confirmed in long-term care facilities such as nursing homes, with at least 193 deaths from it in those facilities.
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Follow AP coverage of the pandemic at https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak.
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