West Virginia Governor Jim Justice made the announcement to reduce the crowd size of fairs festivals, and other outdoor concerts in the state.

Justice compared fairs, festivals, and outdoor concerts to a “breeding ground” for spreading Coronavirus. The allowed size has been reduced from 100 to 25 people, as long as they can operate with proper social distancing. If they would be unable to operate following these guidelines, they are not allowed to take place for the time being.

The smaller crowd size does not apply to outdoor swimming pools, Little League, soccer or West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission sports that are following the social distancing guidelines

Justice said the action is being taken because of concerns about the recent spike in coronavirus numbers in the state.

The changes went into effect this morning at 12:01 A.M.

The governor expressed concern about the direction the state is headed with the coronavirus numbers. He said the state now has 1,338 active cases and has added 206 active cases since he held a news conference last week.

Justice also mentioned that now is not the time for people to protest that their rights are being taken away since they feel inconvenienced by putting on a mask. He said that everyone in West Virginia needs to step up to protect each other and their neighbors.