After several weeks of resistance to the idea, Florida governor Ron DeSantis is initiating a statewide lockdown. For the next thirty days, the state government has issued a stay at home order, and it could (and likely will) extend past that as the situation evolves. DeSantis says that the order makes sense after President Trump extended the nationwide social distancing guidelines another month. There have been almost 7,000 cases of coronavirus in the state with 87 confirmed deaths at the time of writing.
NEW: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announces he will sign an executive order directing residents to "limit movements and personal interactions outside the home" to essential services or activities. https://t.co/Mwwde61NEp pic.twitter.com/aFcbviVlS3
— ABC News (@ABC) April 1, 2020
Florida is vital the world of wrestling right now, and the statewide order could finally shut WWE down after their WrestleMania showcase this weekend. Reliable Internet insider WrestleVotes on Twitter posted that WWE might reconsider their current schedule following WrestleMania due to the new restrictions.
Rumors around the PC last week were that if the state of FL issued a Stay Home order, which happened today, WWE would reconsider taking a break post Mania. The RAW after is shot. I’ve been told if they are pausing for a while, some footage shot won’t be aired. TBD at this point.
— WrestleVotes (@WrestleVotes) April 1, 2020
As far as we know, WWE has some wrestling in the can for next week, but that could be held back if WWE wants to use WrestleMania as a stopping point and transition to more nostalgic programming. With the archives of footage at their disposal, it should be no issue to fill their allotted time with wrestling, even if the fans may not watch in the numbers they’d hope.
Meanwhile, rival promotion AEW has already made plans to tape Dynamite outside of their normal Jacksonville location due to local stay at home orders coming in this past week. They’re broadcasting from an “undisclosed location” as of tonight, and it’s unclear what the new company will do if they are forced to shut their doors temporarily.
RELATED: AEW Applies For Two New Trademarks, Brock Lesnar’s Greatest Mania Moments
Help Prevent the Spread of the Coronavirus
Wrestlezone recommends all readers comply with CDC guidelines and remain as isolated as possible during this urgent time. Visit the Centers for Disease Control at CDC.gov or the World Health Organization at Who.int for the latest information on the coronavirus and learn what you can do to stop the spread.
