If Lakers, Dodgers win, health officials remind Angelenos to celebrate safely - at home

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- With the Lakers and Dodgers making big postseason runs, Los Angeles County health officials are reminding the public to celebrate responsibly should they win.

The Lakers are one win away from winning their 17th NBA title. Game 5 against the Miami Heat is Friday.

"Very excited that the Lakers are going to be playing this this next game," said Dr. Muntu Davis, Los Angeles County health officer. "And we just want to remind people, the safest way to celebrate all of our teams, both the Lakers and the Dodgers, is to do it in the comfort of your own home."

Meanwhile, the Dodgers completed a sweep of the San Diego Padres, winning Game 3 of the National League Division Series Thursday night to advance in the postseason.

RELATED: Dodgers complete sweep, defeat Padres 12-3 in Game 3 of NLDS to advance

Officials are concerned that big public gatherings after the games could slow some of the progress the county has made in reducing new COVID-19 cases.

The county has also been able to reduce the death rate and outbreaks in skilled nursing facilities, Davis said.

For the week of Sept. 20, he said, about two-thirds of the skilled nursing facilities were reporting no current outbreak, an improvement from two weeks earlier when about half of them were reporting outbreaks.

There have also been improvements in cooperation with county contact tracers.

More people are providing contact tracers with information about their contacts, he said. Since early August, about 63% of cases have provided at least one contact for follow-up. But there remain others who have refused or who could not be reached.

"Speaking to cases and identifying their close contacts is a very important part of reducing transmission of COVID-19" Davis said. "We encourage anyone who receives a call from public health to speak to our contact tracers."