ARIZONA, USA — Every day, many actions are taken by Arizona officials, national officials and international officials to combat the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
Here is the latest in Arizona's fight against the coronavirus.
Wednesday, March 18
9 a.m. - In n' Out Burger announced it is closing its dine-in service and will serve customers in the drive-thru and take out only.
7:30 a.m. - Banner Health is banning most visitors starting Thursday, March 19 because of the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.
7 a.m. - Three Maricopa County departments that issue permits -- Planning and Development, Environmental Services and Air Quality -- are altering operations starting Wednesday, March 18 to continue serving customers.
The customer service lobby located at 501 N. 44th Street, Suite 200 in Phoenix will be closed to walk-in customers starting March 18.
Tuesday, March 17
4:44 p.m. - Arizona food banks are changing hours of operation during the outbreak. To see a list, click here.
4:39 p.m. - The Red Cross says it's facing a severe blood shortage after an "unprecedented number of blood drive cancellations" and is asking healthy adults to donate blood. Click here to find the donation center nearest to you.
12:46 p.m. - The City of Phoenix declared a state of emergency. Bars would close and restaurants will switch to take out, delivery or drive-thru models only. The declaration would go into effect at 8 p.m. Tuesday.
10:48 a.m. - Arizona Department of Health Services is strongly recommending that dining establishments in areas of "known community spread," like Maricopa, Pinal and Pima counties, to discourage dine-in traffic.
Officials are also recommending that people do not visit nursing homes or long-term care facilities.
7:57 a.m. - Grand Canyon West announced it would temporarily suspend operations at Grand Canyon Skywalk and the company's other tourist attractions.
Those included Hualapai River Runner tours, the Zipline, Hualapai Ranch and the Hualapai Lodge. The Diamond Creek restaurant will operate for takeout orders from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. The Walapai Market will continue to operate regular hours.
6:48 a.m. - White Mountain Apache Tribe announced its rent and water payments would be waived through April. No one would be able to leave the reservation.
Monday, March 16
8:42 p.m. - The Flagstaff mayor issued a proclamation that closed several businesses, including bars, theaters, libraries and more in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Restaurants are prohibited from serving food or drink to be consumed on-site.
Grocery stores and pharmacies are not affected by the proclamation.
7:42 p.m. - The Hatfield Medical Group is the first primary care group in the Valley to begin testing its patients for coronavirus. They are testing patients with symptoms at their Gilbert location.
7:15 p.m. - The City of Mesa announced it will not shut off electric, gas or water services during the coronavirus outbreak. People will still get notices in the mail about delinquent accounts, however.
3 p.m. - Gov. Doug Ducey held a press conference with many other top officials in the state government to address moves Arizona is making in accordance with new CDC guidelines.
Officials reiterated that the state's presidential preference election would go on as planned.
"There are thousands of workers in communities across the state that must continue the job of counting the ballots in the days following the election. The longer we wait, the more difficult and dangerous this will become," said Secretary of State Katie Hobbs.
The governor and Director of Arizona DHS Dr. Cara Christ also recommended that no one attend large events or gatherings during this time.
The Dow Jones closed at nearly 3,000 points down at the end of trading today, with some fearing a recession.
In the past week, trading closed at nearly 2,000 points down twice, the first time that has ever happened.
12:30 p.m. - President Donald Trump advising Americans to avoid large gatherings in a news conference.
11:15 a.m. - Canada announced that its borders would be closed to all non-citizens.
The move came after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shut down Parliament and advised citizens against all nonessential travel.
Trudeau is currently self-quarantining after his wife, Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, tested positive for the virus.
Actor Idris Elba is the latest big-name celebrity who has tested positive for the coronavirus.
The star found out he was exposed on March 13 and is showing no signs of symptoms.
