Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone on Sunday afternoon announced in a local emergency order that schools across the county will close for two weeks beginning Monday, March 16.

In the interest of keeping our readers and our community informed about health-related matters, this week The East Hampton Star removed the paywall for all of its virus-related coverage, meaning that you can read these stories for free whether you are a subscriber or not.

Update: There remains one confirmed case of COVID-19 in East Hampton Town, County Executive Steve Bellone said Saturday during a press conference at about noon, as the number of cases in Suffolk rose to 37.

Andrew Mitchell took the stand Friday morning, giving the jury its first glimpse into what happened on the evening of Sept. 5, 2019, when his longtime girlfriend, Patchita Tennant, shot him three times. 

In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Town of East Hampton on Friday declared a state of emergency, canceled most meetings, and announced initiatives to allow essential government functions to continue while minimizing face-to-face contact and residents’ need to visit Town Hall and other town facilities. 

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo waived a key public education mandate on Friday afternoon, saying during a press conference that districts could choose to close if they wished and they would not be penalized for holding fewer than 180 school days.

Update, March 14, 7:10 a.m.: The East Hampton Library has announced that it would be closed indefinitely and that fines would be waived for all overdue items. Updates will be posted on the library's website and facebook page.

All talks, classes, and other public programs at the East Hampton, Southampton, Sag Harbor, and Amagansett Libraries have been suspended through the end of March.

A woman in her late 70s became East Hampton Town's first confirmed case of COVID-19, the town announced Thursday night.