In an effort to curb the spread of coronavirus, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has authorized the city to shut off water and power services to any households hosting large parties.
“Starting on Friday night, if LAPD responds and verifies that a large gathering is occurring at a property, and we see these properties re-offending time and time again, they will provide notice and initiate the process to request that [the Department of Water and Power] shut off service within the next 48 hours,” he said at a Wednesday press conference.
He added that the order is aimed at “people determined to break the rules, posing significant public dangers and a threat to all of us.”
The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.
Garcetti’s statements come in the wake of multiple reports of large parties and gatherings in the city that violate health orders.
One such party, held at a mansion on Mulholland Drive, ended in a fatal shooting Monday evening, the Los Angeles Times reported.
"These super-spreader events, and super-spreader people have a disproportionate impact on the lives we are losing and we cannot let that happen like we saw on Mulholland Drive on Monday night," Garcetti said.
Police entered the Monday party following complaints from neighbors and found around 200 people in attendance, the Los Angeles Times reported. Officers did not break up the party, though such a gathering is prohibited under L.A. County’s coronavirus health order.
A shooting was reported after midnight, and a 35-year-old woman later died after sustaining a gunshot wound. Two others were injured but are currently stable, police told the L.A. Times.
“These large house parties have essentially become nightclubs in the hills," Garcetti said. “The consequences of these large parties ripple far beyond just those parties. They ripple throughout our entire community because the virus can quickly and easily spread.”
Earlier on Wednesday, L.A. County Director of Public Health Barbara Ferrer said “You can’t have parties right now.”
“These parties and gatherings hurt all of us,” she said at a news conference. “We ask that everyone make good decisions. Don’t host large parties and don’t attend one if you’re invited.”
That day, the county reported 2,347 new coronavirus cases and 68 deaths, numbers that Ferrer said are “likely an undercount.”
As of Thursday afternoon, there have been at least 533,844 cases and 9,878 deaths attributed to coronavirus in California, according to The New York Times. In Los Angeles County, there have been at least 197,912 cases and 4,825 deaths.
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