NC Gov. Cooper declares Ace Speedway an ‘imminent hazard’ and closes the facility
Gov. Roy Cooper ordered an Alamance County speedway that’s violated his executive orders against mass gatherings closed immediately, declaring the venue an imminent hazard.
In an order issued Monday night and obtained by The News & Observer, Cooper and Dr. Mandy Cohen said Ace Speedway could open again if it presents a plan to adhere to state guidelines and that plan is approved by the Department of Health and Human Services.
“Mass gatherings do spread the virus,” said Cohen, the state’s DHHS secretary who signed the order closing the speedway. “It was irresponsible for them to keep operating in the way they were doing.”
The speedway’s online schedule lists racing events on Saturday and June 19.
“This speedway has knows that the (mass gathering) order is in existence and has flagrantly violated the order and put their customers in danger as well as anyone who has come into contact with their customers,” Cooper said during a Tuesday news conference.
The order said Ace Speedway must notify the public by 5 p.m. Tuesday that its upcoming race schedule and other events are canceled until June 26. The speedway’s website and Facebook page had not yet done so as of 5 p.m. Tuesday.
“Ace Speedway,” Cohen said Tuesday, “despite the fact that we’ve reached out and they know the order and asked them to come into compliance, we’ve sent letters ahead of time asking them to come into compliance, and still they did not work with us on that. So we felt like we needed to take this extra action.”
An email sent by the N&O to Ace Speedway’s father-and-son owners, Robert and Jason Turner, for comment on the order was not answered Tuesday.
Amy Galey, chairwoman of the Alamance County Board of Commissioners, said in an email to the N&O she is leaving the issue up to Alamance County Sheriff Terry Johnson.
“This is a law enforcement issue, not a county government issue,” Galey wrote. “There is no role for the Board of Commissioners in enforcing an executive order.”
The Alamance County Health Department released information to the N&O via email on Tuesday saying they advised speedway officials of safety recommendations aimed at slowing the spread of COVID-19 prior to its first event on May 23. Rosters of participants, many of whom live in other counties or states, were collected. Track employees have taken photos of spectators’ driver’s licenses as they entered.
“At this time,” the email said, “the Health Department has not identified a cluster of cases associated with the ACE Speedway events. Please note, this may change as the data of more recent events is inventoried and cross-referenced.”
Governor, Alamance sheriff disagree on crowds
Johnson told the N&O in an interview last Friday that Cooper’s orders weren’t clear about why Ace couldn’t open to crowds larger than 25 while other outdoor events, such as churches and protests, are exempted from the mass gathering restrictions.
Johnson said he believed Cooper’s threats to Ace Speedway were political. He wondered why other speedways, such as 311 Speedway in Stokes County, are operating without Cooper threatening to shut them down.
“I assure you that I respect the Office of the Governor of North Carolina but I have serious reservations on the legality of his order,” Johnson wrote in a statement released Monday night.
Cooper said he was unaware of any other speedways violating the mass gathering laws. He said it’s first up to local law enforcement to enforce the mass gathering rule before the state steps in.
“In most places across the state,” Cooper said, “everybody wants to work together and are abiding by the orders. Local law enforcement, when they see a violation, are telling people about it and a lot of people are correcting the violation. In the vast majority of places across the state, this is working well.”
Other NC speedways hosting fans?
The 311 Speedway is advertising for its June 13 event on its website, which shows admission for $30 and $15 with discounts available for those 70 and older. Kids 12 and under are admitted free.
GALOT Motorsports Park in Dunn is holding drag racing events without spectators. In a phone interview with the N&O on Tuesday, track manager Dana Strickland said the facility received approval from state and Johnston County health officials before proceeding.
Strickland said concerns over the facility’s liability insurance coverage if laws are broken were a factor.
Family and crew members are allowed to attend, limited to three people for each participant, but social distancing is practiced and plenty of hand sanitizer is available, Strickland said.
“We are wanting to work with folks to find ways to run some of these activities,” Cohen said. “I would say a lot of the other short-track raceways around the state have worked with us.”
Cooper said if venues repeatedly violate the law, like Ace Speedway did, he’s administration will take steps to stop it.
Located in Altamahaw, near Elon, Ace Speedway held events on May 23 and 30 and June 6. All three times, there were thousands of people in attendance and all exceeded the 25 allowed at outdoor events under Cooper’s executive order that moved the state into Phase Two of his reopening plan on May 22.
The imminent hazard order characterizes Ace Speedway events as “likely to cause an immediate threat to human life, an immediate threat of serious physical injury, an immediate threat of serious adverse health effects.”
Coronavirus in Alamance County
On May 23, the day of the first race at ACE Speedway, the Alamance County Health Department reported the county had 278 confirmed cases of COVID-19. Five days later, on May 28, the county reported 326 cases. As of Tuesday, the county had 553 cases.
The incubation period for COVID-19 is thought to extend to 14 days, with a median time of 4-5 days from exposure to symptoms onset, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. The CDC says one study has shown that 97.5% of persons with COVID-19 who develop symptoms will do so within 11.5 days of exposure.
Epidemiologists have said each person infected with COVID-19 is likely to infect two to three others.
On its Facebook page, the department said Monday it had 43 new cases since the day before, and it cited several contributing factors to account for the increase, including more testing and the lifting of restrictions to allow people to move about more.
A Facebook post from the department cautioned residents.
“All new cases today are (in the) general population,” the post said, as opposed to an outbreak in a nursing home or other congregate-living facility. “Several household clusters have been identified and are the result of individuals attending cookouts, parties and other gatherings. It is important to practice the 3Ws – Wear, Wait, and Wash – everyday, all the time.
“Each interaction could be an opportunity for disease spread.”
This story was originally published June 9, 2020 at 12:02 PM with the headline "NC Gov. Cooper declares Ace Speedway an ‘imminent hazard’ and closes the facility."