HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez has declared a state of emergency in the south Florida county as the world continues to deal with the public health threat created by the coronavirus.

County officials have canceled or postponed all mass gatherings in the area. As a result, the NASCAR Cup Series race scheduled for March 22 at Homestead-Miami Speedway has been postponed.

However, the statement released by Mayor Gimenez states that NASCAR officials will decide whether or not to hold the race without fans.

Below is the full statement from Mayor Gimenez:

“Miami-Dade County is under a state of emergency, as we deal with the public health threat of COVID-19.

“Although we do not have community spread at this time, we want to take the preemptive steps to keep it that way. Therefore, I have decided to suspend the operation of the Miami-Dade County Youth Fair, the Miami Open tennis tournament, the MIA 5K run, and all major events at the American Airlines Arena. The March 22 NASCAR race at the Homestead Miami Speedway is postponed at this time. NASCAR officials will decide whether or not to hold the race without fans.

“As we move forward together during this time, we will continue to monitor what the World Health Organization has determined is a global pandemic. We will constantly evaluate planned mass gatherings as the situation evolves.

“I will be making future policy decisions regarding indoor events planned for more than 250 people based on federal and state health officials’ guidance.

“In addition, I am recommending that smaller gatherings, if they’re not essential, also be reconsidered.”

NASCAR said in a statement that the sanctioning body will announce its plan for near-term event scheduling Thursday at 1 p.m. EST.

The announcement by Mayor Gimenez that the Homestead-Miami Speedway NASCAR Cup Series race has been postponed is the latest motorsports cancelation or postponement related to the coronavirus pandemic.

MotoGP officials have already announced the cancelation or postponement of four races in Qatar, Thailand, the United States and Argentina. Formula E officials have also announced the postponement of events in Rome, Italy and Indonesia.

World Superbike has also announced the postponements of multiple events, with races in Spain and France already rescheduled for later in the year. Officials from Monster Energy AMA Supercross confirmed Wednesday that the Seattle, Wash., round of the series that was scheduled for Saturday has also been postponed.

The NASCAR Whelen Euro Series is also postponing events. The series event that was scheduled for Spain’s Circuit Ricardo Tormo on April 25-26 has been postponed until Oct. 31-Nov. 1.

The NTT IndyCar Series season opener, the Grand Prix of St. Petersburg in Fla., is still scheduled to take place. However, general admission has been canceled for the event by event officials.