City of Guthrie issues Shelter in Place; face masks now mandatory

The City of Guthrie has followed the lead of several Oklahoma cities by implementing a Shelter in Place ordinance due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The City took it a step further by mandating cloth face masks when going out in public.

With a unanimous vote by the city council on Monday afternoon, including the emergency clause, the ordinance will go into effect at 11:59 p.m. on Monday and go through May 5.

Residents living within the city limits are required to shelter in place at their residence. Residents may leave their residents for essential activities or to operate essential business activities.

For the complete list of essential activities and essential business please see below in this article.

While its a recommendation of the Center for Disease Control (CDC), City officials are now requiring cloth face coverings when going out in public to get ahead of the curve. City officials say do not buy medical masks as they are needed for medical teams.

Guthrie is believed the first city in Oklahoma to make face coverings mandatory.

The ordinance states the masks are primarily to protect you from accidentally infecting others.

Essential Activities and/or Essential Work

Within the city limits of the City of Guthrie all individuals shall wear a cloth face covering when making a public outing for Essential Activities and/or Essential Work.

“Essential Activities” shall include:

  • to engage in activities or perform tasks essential to their health and safety, or to the health and safety of their family, household members, or pets (for example, obtaining medical supplies or medication, visiting a health care professional, obtaining supplies needed to work from home, or perform property maintenance);
  • to obtain necessary services or supplies for themselves, family, household members, or pets or to deliver those services or supplies to others (for example, food and beverage, pet supply, and any other household consumer products, and products necessary to maintain the safety, sanitation, and essential operation of residences;
  • to engage in outdoor activity, provided the individuals, except household members, shall follow social distancing and group size guidelines issued by the CDC (for example, walking, biking, hiking, or running);
  • to perform work at an Essential Business;
  • to care for or transport a family member or pet in another household;
  • to move to another residence either in or outside the limits of the City of Guthrie; and
  • to otherwise carry out activities specifically permitted in this Ordinance.
  • “Essential Businesses” shall mean those businesses identified by the Governor of the State of Oklahoma, or his designee, as critical infrastructure sectors, including critical government workers as defined by the government employer.

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22 Comments on "City of Guthrie issues Shelter in Place; face masks now mandatory"

  1. Is 5his just in city limits or for the county as well?

  2. Clinton Betchan | April 6, 2020 at 3:19 pm | Reply

    Do you have to wear a mask while running?

  3. Britt Wayne Smith | April 6, 2020 at 3:31 pm | Reply

    Excuse me! I understand prudent precautions. As I am an essential person, I am required to travel to and from work. Can I be stopped and have “papers” asked for? Will the police be making random stops and asking people? Yes, masks can help, but making it mandatory is a little Orwellian when the Federal Govt hasn’t required it yet. What law (citation please) will one be breaking? Has this law been passed by a vote? Maybe you should have the police go thru all of the city of Guthrie and state it over the loudspeaker.

  4. So will the city be handing masks out at city limits?

  5. Dennis Laughlin | April 6, 2020 at 4:05 pm | Reply

    Who in town has face masks available?

    • I was wondering this same thing. Can’t find face masks anywhere. *Anyone have info about where to get them? Otherwise, I can’t enter a store for essentials. Thanks!

  6. Sharon Burns-Doan | April 6, 2020 at 4:08 pm | Reply

    I am so surprised and so very very proud of Guthrie. Thank you so much. I realize you’ll take a lot of heat, but there ARE many of us who know you have put protecting people above politics. Prayers and gratitude, Sharon Burns-Doan

  7. Mike waltman | April 6, 2020 at 5:23 pm | Reply

    Politicians should never be trusted. And those with power to pass laws will always read any limitations on their power in the most expansive way possible.

  8. For them to set up Soviet era checkpoints like they did and do in China, a state of martial law would be required. If you are stopped for speeding or the dozens of other stupid things people are doing now, you may be asked what your business is to be out and about. It will be noted on the citation and a judge can use discretion for tacking on a second ticket for disobeying a mayor order under a city declared state of emergency. Of if its a state trooper, a county judge can tack on the fine for also not obeying the order. But as long as you don’t do something stupid to get stopped,like I now see 90 percent of people doing, then you can leave your home, go to the store, go back home and you won’t even be bothered.

  9. There are no face/mouth masks to be found. Amazon has a delivery date of July, maybe August. Can the City of Guthrie direct us where to get these masks? I don’t have any qualms about paying for a mask, I just can’t find any…

  10. Janet Slaughter | April 6, 2020 at 5:38 pm | Reply

    I watched the city council meeting that initiated this enforcement. The problem, as I see it, with the public refusing to understand the seriousness of this is that TWO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS HAD NO MASK!!!!

  11. Good job on the part of the City Manager and City Council. Having to wear a mask will be a small price to pay if it helps “flatten the curve.”

  12. Guthrie just turned into a communist city. We were coming in to town to frequent restaurants to help them out during this load of BS, now we will go elsewhere. Way to go boys of the council! You just helped to ruin what businesses that are left in the town all because you are spineless sheep. The numbers of this amped up flu have been inflated by the CDC and the WHO, those with problems with their immune systems (which are a minority of the population) are the ones having issues with the covid, yet you shut the entire town down??? I for one will be voting against every last one of you come election time and I know for a fact I am not the only one who feels this way.

  13. A “cloth face covering.” Isn’t that what Batman wears?

  14. Seriously, what is it protecting me from. I’m already staying 6 feet away. Masks work for contagious patients who are being interacted with in close and constricted quarters. What are they going to accomplish out in the open. Unless you are getting up on someone to purposely breathe on them then they aren’t all that useful except to make you feel like you are controlling something. These rinkydink small town city councils are going too far with this kind of nonsense.

  15. Calvin Ellis | April 7, 2020 at 6:10 am | Reply

    I think the Mayor and all the city council members are a bunch of idiots how do they think all the people of Guthrie are going to go find places to buy face mask at the last minute.

  16. Derrick Piersol | April 7, 2020 at 7:02 am | Reply

    Congrats Guthrie City Council for leading the ignorant children of Logan county through this pandemic. Not only have you greatly decreased the already depressed sales tax revenue but you’ve managed to kick all of the businesses that were still operating while they were down. Please notify us as to when we can eat, shower and walk the dog.

  17. So what’s next? Mandatory gloves or how about a full biological suit before leaving the house. You may laugh and think that’s ridiculous but who ever thought we would be at this point. These people are ELECTED officials but they are acting like the SS or the Gestapo. As someone else stated I will vote against everyone of these so called officials.

  18. If only the spread was limited to the obtuse.
    Would solve a lot of problems around here.

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