Governor, Tulsa Mayor Call On Oklahomans As COVID-19 Cases, Deaths, Hospitalizations Rise

On Thursday, Governor Kevin Stitt and Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum both urged Oklahomans to do more to help slow the spread of COVID-19.

The theme that ran through both the governor’s and the mayor’s conferences Thursday is that Oklahomans need to do their part to flatten the curve and help our healthcare systems.

"I think we've gotten a little lax for the past six months," Stitt said. "It's not about magic words. It's really about compliance and getting Americans and Oklahomans to pay attention and flatten the curve as much as possible."

Stitt said Oklahoma hospitals are filling up, and that some of them are stressed by a shortage of staff paired with the influx of new COVID-19 patients.

"We saw this tick up," Stitt said. "What we're really watching is, we have 1,300 people in the hospital right now being treated for COVID in hospitals. We don't want that to continue to rise and take up more and more capacity."

Tulsa Mayor G.T. Bynum echoed the thought at a separate news conference. He painted a picture of what it could take to keep the healthcare system from being overwhelmed.

"Take it easy for the next ten days," Bynum said. "In the early going of this pandemic, this community halted the spread of the virus and saved the integrity of our healthcare system by doing just that."

Both Bynum and Stitt emphasized the importance of keeping distance and wearing masks. Mayor Bynum went a step further and thanked the leaders of cities near Tulsa for their recent mask mandates.

Mayor Bynum said the spread of the virus is mostly driven by smaller gatherings of friends and family, not large events.

He said that's why it's especially important to keep your guard up, wear a mask, and avoid gatherings with extended family this Thanksgiving.