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Habersham County Sheriff concerned about 'folks pouring out of the hot spots in Atlanta'

Habersham County's Board of Commissioners have issued a shelter-in-place order due to the coronavirus spread.

HABERSHAM COUNTY, Ga. — In a Facebook post late Saturday, Habersham County Sheriff Joey Terrell said he had received a lot of questions wondering if the county was under a curfew as a result of the coronavirus.

After answering the questions, he talked about a "lot of motorcycles" and "folks pouring out of the hot spots in Atlanta" heading to the mountains and how they should stay away.

"No, the county is not under a curfew," Terrell said. "The county commissioners passed a resolution and asked that everybody shelter in place. They're just reiterating what the governor has asked."

The Habersham County Board of Commissioners on Saturday adopted a resolution declaring a public health state of emergency and issued a shelter-in-place order for residents.

RELATED: Coronavirus in Georgia: 2,446 confirmed cases, 79 deaths as of Sunday morning

Terrell then turned his attention to the number of visitors coming to the mountain areas from Atlanta and from other parts of the state.

"I've seen a lot of motorcycles, a lot of folks from different counties," Terrell said. "And they're out riding. I don't know how to put a stop to that. Panther Creek Park is closed and we're trying to keep an eye on it and tell folks it's closed and don't be there, so we're doing what we can to remind folks."

Terrell said that there are still people trying to get into the park areas despite the closures. He said his people are working to enforce the closures as best they can.

"There's still folks pouring out of the hot spots in Atlanta and the different places that want to get up and go in the mountains and get away from the rat race down there," he said. "But if they would stay down there and isolate and just get through this, this thing (the coronavirus) will start to flatten out and it'll go away."

The shelter-in-place order for Habersham County is in effect for at least two weeks, according to the resolution. 

11Alive is focusing our news coverage on the facts and not the fear around the virus.  We want to keep you informed about the latest developments while ensuring that we deliver confirmed, factual information.

We will track the most important coronavirus elements relating to Georgia on this page. Refresh often for new information.

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