#Los Angeles launches new color-coded system for coronavirus threats

Los Angeles has launched a new color-coded threat system for the coronavirus pandemic, Mayor Eric Garcetti announced Wednesday.

The system includes green, yellow, orange and red threat levels, with green indicating COVID-19 is mostly contained and there’s low risk of infection, while red flags a high risk and warns people should stay home at all times.

“Information and data on the threat helps us all inform our behavior and guides us to better days,” Garcetti said during a news briefing.

The indicator is currently tipped to orange, warning of an “extremely high risk of infection” with an advisory that residents should only leave their homes for essential activities.

“You should assume everyone around you is infectious,” Garcetti said.

The threat levels are influenced by indicators like positivity rates, hospital capacity, the number of cases and deaths.

The project comes as the city and the state of California grapple with a surging number of coronavirus cases, a trend that has forced Gov. Gavin Newsom to dramatically scale back his state reopening.

Newsom on Sunday ordered all bars in LA and six other counties to close over spikes in cases.

The governor followed up Wednesday with another expanded order to shut down bars, museums, movie theaters and indoor dining across most of the state for three weeks.

“COVID-19 is still circulating in California, and in some parts of the state, growing stronger,” Newsom said in a statement.

Over a two-week period from June 15 to June 29, the state’s confirmed coronavirus cases increased by nearly 45 percent, rising to nearly 250,000.

Hospitalizations during that time period increased 52 percent to 5,077.

California is among many states across the country —  including the likes of Florida, Texas and Arizona — experiencing an alarming surge in cases. The US as a whole shattered its record for single-day cases increases multiple times during the last week of June.

The US has by far the most confirmed coronavirus cases in the world, reporting 2.68 million infections as of Wednesday night, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

With Post wires