HAMBLEN COUNTY, Tenn. — Hamblen County Mayor Bill Brittain extended the requirement for people to wear masks inside of public spaces on Friday. Now, the mask mandate will be in effect until Sept. 30, unless it is renewed again.
Brittain signed Executive Order 2 Saturday, which extended Extended Order 1. The first order took effect on Aug. 4.
Officials said that the number of active cases of COVID-19, the average number of new cases per day and the number of hospitalizations in Hamblen County decreased since they required people to wear masks.
Governor Bill Lee signed Executive Order 54 in July, which allowed local leaders to decide whether to require people to wear masks. Lee also extended those guidelines Friday, which are meant to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. They will now be in effect until Sept. 30.
Hamblen County's mask mandate was originally scheduled to expire Aug. 29 at 11:59 p.m.