All DMV offices in state close due to COVID-19 pandemic

SAN DIEGO (CNS) - All California Department of Motor Vehicle offices will be closed today, including those in San Diego County, in an effort to limit the spread of the coronavirus.

In a message to DMV employees Thursday afternoon, the department announced the offices will be closed so they can be thoroughly cleaned in order to “protect the health and safety of customers and employees during the coronavirus pandemic.''

Offices are expected to reopen to employees on April 1, but remain closed to the public until further notice. The department said that by April 2 it plans to offer more services online.

Meanwhile, the city of San Diego is considering slashing funding to all but the most essential city services as the number of countywide COVID-19 cases increased to 341, and a third county resident died of the disease Thursday.

San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer said Thursday that the city was facing a financial crisis, projecting that the city has lost $109 million in tax revenue during an economic slowdown resulting from the global pandemic.

According to city data, San Diego has missed out on $83 million in hotel occupancy taxes and $26 million in sales tax, the city's third- and second-highest revenue generators. Property tax brings in the most money for the city, but less is known about that data at this time. Faulconer said the lost money represents the yearly budget of the city's entire parks and recreation department.

The number of coronavirus cases in San Diego County reached 341 Thursday, an increase of 64 from Wednesday, the highest day-over-day increase in COVID-19 cases so far.

County health officials stopped counting non-county residents in that total, but there were 20 positive-testing individuals in that category Thursday.

Of the positive-testing individuals, 69 have been hospitalized, with

31 of those patients listed as critical.

The number of coronavirus deaths in San Diego County rose to three

after a woman in her 80s died Thursday, county health officials reported.

The San Diego County Sheriff's Department announced Thursday that a

nurse at the Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility in Santee tested

positive for COVID-19 and nine employees of the detention facility are self-

quarantining.

San Diego city officials also announced Thursday that a San Diego

lifeguard has tested positive for COVID-19.

Two more sailors aboard San Diego-based ships tested positive for the

coronavirus, Navy officials reported Thursday.

Seventeen additional positive diagnoses were revealed Wednesday among

sailors and Navy employees, including a civilian who had been working at the

Naval Air Station North Island Child Development Center. The employee began

feeling ill two weeks ago and has been absent from work since then, officials

said.

The latest cases brings the total number of local military testing

positive for coronavirus to 35, including 20 sailors on Navy ships and 14 shore-

based sailors. Three Marines at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar and one marine

at Camp Pendleton have also tested positive for the virus.

Also Thursday:

-- San Diego Community College District announced it would maintain

online classes through the summer, but had not yet canceled commencement plans

scheduled for May and June.

-- Three inmates were tested at San Diego County's lone prison, with

no positive results at present.

-- The San Diego Police Department reported that calls had decreased

by 11% since Gov. Gavin Newsom directed Californians to shelter in their homes.

-- The San Diego City Attorney's Office urged families with guns in

the home to practice proper firearm safety while self-quarantining to keep the

weapons out of the hands of children. With stay-at-home orders issued at the

state and local levels, and schools closed down due to the COVID-19 pandemic,

City Attorney Mara Elliott's office said gun safety is paramount.

“When you have guns and children in the home and do not practice safe

storage, you are increasing the risk that someone will be accidentally

shot,'' Elliott said. “Children are very resourceful when it comes to locating

things their parents thought they'd never find. When they find a gun, it often

leads to tragedy.''