HARTFORD, Conn. — Governor Ned Lamont will deliver a recorded voice message to more than four million phone numbers in Connecticut through the state’s CTAlert system in an effort to urge all residents to “Stay Safe, Stay Home” as the state continues to face the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Officials said the recording will be sent from the Emergency Operations Center in Hartford this afternoon and will be accompanied by a text message to mobile phones containing a link to the state’s coronavirus website, ct.gov/coronavirus.
The governor is directing all non-essential businesses and not-for-profit entities in Connecticut to prohibit all in-person functions if they are able to, effective Monday, March 23, 2020 at 8:00 p.m. The governor is encouraging all businesses to employ, to the maximum extent possible, any telecommuting or work-from-home procedures that they can safely implement.
The order excludes any essential business or entity providing essential services or functions, such as healthcare, food service, law enforcement, and similar critical services.
The Office of the Governor is working in concert with the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development to develop guidance for all businesses relating to this order. That guidance will be released over the weekend.
Governor Lamont is the first governor in Connecticut history to utilize the CTAlert system for a statewide phone call. Residents can sign up for the CTAlert system at www.ctalert.gov.
“The CTAlert system is a vital tool to keep our residents informed, especially during a public health emergency,” Governor Lamont said. “Providing accurate information to our residents during these kind of events is important, and the CTAlert system is how we do that.”
