South Gwinnett News

The City of Atlanta has reimplemented indoor mask mandates in response to the surging number of COVID-19 cases.

On Dec. 21, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms issued an executive order reinstating the city's mask mandate, according to FOX 5 News. The mayor previously lifted the mask mandate in November in response to steadily declining case numbers.

Data from the Georgia Department of Public Health shows that Fulton County has reported 344 cases per 100,000 residents over the past two weeks.

The department also reported that DeKalb County showed 248 cases per 100,000 residents.

"The CDC has designated Fulton and DeKalb counties as areas of high transmission for the COVID-19 virus," Bottoms said in a statement, according to FOX 5 News. "Given this recent surge across the Atlanta area, and based upon the counsel from public health professionals, I am reinstating the citywide mask mandate. We are watching the data daily and will continue to engage experts for guidance on how best to provide for the safety and wellbeing of our communities."

Over the last month, the number of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 has risen almost 50% across the state and the number of infections detected continues to surge.

Data from the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention shows that omicron is now the most widespread variant of COVID-19 in the U.S., accounting for 73% of new infections last week.