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TRENTON, N.J. — Customers and employees at New Jersey retail businesses and essential industries must wear a cloth face covering while on the premises, according to an executive order signed last week by Gov. Phil Murphey. These measures, along with other steps outlined in the order are designed to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Businesses covered by the order include grocery and convenient stores, warehouses and manufacturing facilities, among others. In addition to requiring cloth face masks, the order states that retail businesses must take measures such as limiting occupancy to 50 percent of the building’s stated maximum capacity, installing physical barriers such as shield guards between customers and cashiers whenever possible, providing sanitization products such as hand sanitizer and sanitizing wipes to customers and employees, to name a few. Warehousing, manufacturing and essential construction businesses have a similar list of requirements in addition to cloth face coverings, including: Prohibit nonessential visitors from entering the worksite. Require individuals to maintain six feet or more distance between them whenever possible. Restrict the number of individuals who can access common areas, such as restrooms and breakrooms, concurrently. Provide sanitization materials such as hand sanitizer and sanitizing wipes to workers and visitors. Require frequent sanitization of high-touch areas such as restrooms, breakrooms, equipment and machinery. The order, signed April 8, went into effect April 10 and will continue until revoked by the governor. To view a summary of the requirements on the New Jersey state website, click here.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The Knox County Sheriff’s Department received a call reporting a stabbing at the Pilot Travel Center on Strawberry Plains Pike in Knoxville, Tennessee, shortly before 7 a.m. Tuesday (April 7). Upon arrival, officers found four victims and, during an encounter with the male suspect, the suspect was shot by an officer. The man, who was armed with a knife, was identified by witnesses as the suspect. When confronted by officers, the suspect refused to drop the weapon, according to Tennessee Bureau of Investigation spokesperson Leslie Earhart. “At some point during the encounter, one of the officers fired shots, striking the individual. He was pronounced dead at the scene,” Earhart said in a press conference following the incident. Earhart said there were four people stabbed during the incident. Three were reported dead at the scene; the fourth was transported to a local hospital. The condition of that individual is currently unknown. Earnhart confirmed that some of the victims were employees at the travel center. The crime scene includes the interior of the store as well as the surrounding property, and Earhart estimates that the on-scene investigation, which she said was being conducted by TBI field agents as well as agents from the drug-investigation division and the agency’s forensic scientists, will take a few hours. In an earlier interview, Knox County Sheriff Tom Spangler said the officer involved in the shooting is OK and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation will be responsible for further information and investigation in the case. “This remains an active and ongoing investigation. As always, we’ll be sharing our findings with the district attorney general,” Earhart said.

PHOENIX — The Arizona Department of Transportation has temporarily reopened two long-shuttered northern Arizona rest areas to support truckers hauling essentials during the current public health situation. The Parks Rest Area along Interstate 40 west of Flagstaff (milepost 182) and the Christensen Rest Area on Interstate 17 south of Flagstaff (milepost 324) offer parking, portable toilets and hand-washing stations exclusively for commercial-vehicle drivers. “Long-haul truckers are working tirelessly to support our nation during this difficult time, and we will do all we can to support them,” ADOT Director John Halikowski said. “Opening these temporary rest stops provides a place for drivers to get the rest they need as they help all of us.” ADOT crews have been restriping the parking lots of both rest areas. Portable toilets and hand-washing stations have been brought in, as well as trash bins. There will be staff at the rest areas for a few hours every day. The Parks and Christensen rest areas are only available to commercial vehicles. Other ADOT rest areas remain open for all travelers, with staff following enhanced sanitation protocols including regularly wiping down frequently touched surfaces. When additional services became available in and around Flagstaff, and along I-40 and I-17, Christensen closed in 2002, and Parks closed in 2009.There are no plans to reopen either rest area permanently.

On April 2, in support of the critical need to move hazardous materials during the COVID-19 public health emergency, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued a temporary relief notice for companies shipping hand sanitizers used for sanitation purposes. Intended to make sanitation products readily available during the public health emergency, the relief applies to hand-sanitizer products that meet certain specifications and are shipped by highway only; shipments made by air, rail or water. As alcohol-based products, hand sanitizers are typically classified as a Class 3 Flammable Liquid, meaning they have a flash point (the temperature at which a particular organic compound gives off sufficient vapor to ignite in air) of 140 degrees Fahrenheit, and require specific packaging, labeling and shipping procedures. “PHMSA is aware of multiple companies throughout the country that will be producing products such as hand sanitizer and other alcohol-based products to help respond to the COVID-19 public health emergency under specific FDA (Food and Drug Administration) guidance,” the notice of relief states. “… PHMSA intends to provide temporary relief from certain HMR (hazardous material requirements) while continuing to maintain an appropriate level of safety for companies that are producing products under the FDA guidance.” Temporary relief is offered for shipments of hand sanitizer when the following requirements are met: Packages contain hand sanitizer containing either ethyl alcohol or isopropyl alcohol at a concentration not to exceed 80%. Packagings are leak-tight and securely closed, secured against shifting, and protected against damage. The material is contained in a packaging having a capacity not over 8 gallons. For inner packagings not exceeding 1 gallon: Packages are a combination package and the inner receptacle containing the liquid is placed inside an outer packaging where the inner packagings are secured and cushioned within the outer packaging to prevent breakage, leakage, and movement and inner packagings are packed with package closures in an upright orientation. The net contents of all inner packagings in any single outer packaging do not exceed 8 gallons (e.g., 8×1 gallon packages). The company name and the words “Sanitizer – Contains Ethyl Alcohol”’ or “’Sanitizer – Contains Isopropyl Alcohol”’ are marked on the outer package and, if applicable, the overpack. Packages exceeding a capacity of 1 gallon: Are overpacked in crates, cages, carts, boxes or similar overpacks. Packages are secured in the transport vehicle in such a way as to prevent breakage, leakage and movement. Packages are packed package closures in an upright orientation. The company name and the words “Sanitizer – Contains Ethyl Alcohol” or “Sanitizer – Contains Isopropyl Alcohol” is marked on the outside of the single package and the overpack. Temporary relief guidelines for sanitizer packaged in quantities of more than 8 gallons, for example in drums, are also noted in the document. To read the temporary notice of relief in its entirety, click here.