ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — Playgrounds in St. Louis County are now back open for the first time since April.
The St. Louis County Parks Department announced last week that starting Monday, Sept. 21, parks will be open from 8 a.m. to dusk every day.
The parks department said it developed a plan that was approved by the St. Louis County Department of Public Health. It calls for cleaning and disinfecting playground equipment at all parks several times a week with CDC-approved cleaners.
How frequently each park is cleaned could increase or decrease depending on future information from then county health department, the state or the CDC.
The St. Louis County Department has 55 playground sites throughout the county.
Following the county’s health order, masks are still required except on children while they’re playing. Residents are asked to stay home if they’re sick and to continue following social distancing standards.
For more information about the status of St. Louis County parks, visit the county’s coronavirus website.
St. Louis County parks closed to the public on April 3. Playgrounds have been off limits since then even as the county reopened all parks on May 18.
As of Monday morning, St. Louis County health officials reported a total of 22,833 confirmed COVID-19 cases, an increase of 277 cases from Friday. In all, 782 people have died.
The rate of cases per 100,000 residents is lowest in the 0-9 age group and highest in the 20-29 age group, according to the county’s dashboard.