Governor Bill Lee said he will skip Thanksgiving at the family farm for the first time in his life due to COVID-19 fears.
He noted that one concern is his 87-year-old mother.
At a Tuesday press conference in which he outlined rising case numbers and hospitalizations across the state, he said, "We have a real crisis."
He added, "Our numbers are climbing steadily and we expect that to continue." Noting that the same resurgence is happening around the country, he said, "There are many difficult weeks ahead."
The governor still ruled out a statewide mask mandate, saying a study shows that 80 percent of Tennesseans are wearing them anyway.
Instead, he urged citizens to "stop and think and make good common sense decisions in carrying out your lives."
Dr. Lisa Piercey, state health commissioner, also sounded the alarms.
She said 30 percent of ICU beds are being taken by COVID patients, and they also are occupying 20 percent of other hospital beds.
Dr. Piercey said the factor in having enough places for all the sick is whether there is adequate staffing rather than available beds.
She said the state is getting ready for distributing vaccines from Pfizer at the first of December. She said there will be a very limited supply at first with those going to healthcare workers and first responders with high risk factors.
Governor Lee said Tennessee was one of four states selected by Pfizer because of its readiness to deploy the vaccines.
He said, "We expect that the vaccines will be widely available by early spring."