Greene County is dealing with another surge of coronavirus cases.
There were 82 new cases reported Wednesday and 95 on Tuesday – a one-day record.
At least 42 of those cases are connected to the jail and nursing homes.
Despite that, Springfield-Greene County Health Director Clay Goddard says he thinks the Springfield face mask ordinance is doing its job.
He says more cities and counties need to pass similar ordinances.
“I would encourage policy makers to consider it. And I would also encourage citizens just to adopt it voluntarily.”
Goddard says he’d like to see people wearing masks statewide.
He says if about 70-percent of people would wear masks, it would make a big difference on the coronavirus cases.
He says he’s not sure what the compliance rate is like in Springfield, but he says he thinks its probably more than 70-percent.
Clay discussed these new cases, as well as the 95 cases we received on Tuesday, in a briefing earlier this morning. If you missed it, you can watch the briefing here: https://t.co/0k11E2qG91
— S-GC Health Dept. (@SGCHD) August 13, 2020
Here’s more from the health department:
On Wednesday, the Health Department received 82 new cases of COVID-19 among Greene County residents. This follows 95 new cases on Tuesday.
These cases are currently under investigation, so the full details of the circumstances of each are currently unknown. The Health Department will continue to investigate and analyze trends.
At this time, it does appear that at least 42 of these cases are connected to the Greene County Jail or long-term care facilities.
There also appear to be a number of cases emerging from large group activities.
“We need to be avoiding high-risk activities such as gathering in large groups and ignoring masking and physical distancing,” Director of Health Clay Goddard emphasized during the briefing. “I think many of us are letting our guard down around the people we know or feel close to—but we can’t have that false sense of security. We have to continue to be vigilant, because this is one of our biggest vulnerabilities as a community.”
In the last three weeks, those in the age category of 20-29 have made up 30% of Greene County’s new cases. Goddard urged young adults to take the virus seriously, and to be leaders in keeping themselves and their loved ones healthy.
“We know you’re up for this challenge,” Goddard said. “Our young adults are some of the most motivated, creative and capable generations I’ve seen. You will find ways to live, to work and to socialize that keep you and the people you care about from the further spread of illness. I have every confidence that you will find solutions that the rest of us will copy.”
Tom and Joyce Gammon’s story
During the briefing, the video linked below shared Tom Gammon speaking about his wife, Joyce. Joyce tragically passed from COVID-19 in June.
Tom’s story serves as an important reminder for all of us to take care of each other and do our due diligence to slow the spread of COVID-19. It’s more important now than ever to come together to protect our family, friends and neighbors.
Joyce lost her life to COVID-19 in June. Her husband of 33 years, Tom, shares her story as an important reminder that we all play a role in protecting one another during this pandemic.https://t.co/WCcZr6MfFK
— S-GC Health Dept. (@SGCHD) August 13, 2020
Civil Emergency Proclamation
As a housekeeping item in order to ensure the city has needed flexibility in the coming weeks, Mayor Ken McClure issued a renewal of the Sixth Proclamation of Civil Emergency, effective Aug. 14-Sept. 13.
“There continues to reasonably appear to exist a state of civil emergency, and I, therefore, am renewing the Sixth Proclamation of Civil Emergency for an additional 30 days; however, due to the passage by City Council of an ordinance setting out regulations to protect public health and safety from the spread of COVID-19, I do not believe it necessary to exercise the additional powers granted to me under City Code at the present time,” McClure said.
Archived video of this briefing and past media briefings about COVID-19 are available at https://vimeo.com/sgfcityview
Preventing COVID-19
We all play a critical role in slowing the spread of COVID-19. Wear a face mask when in a public setting, practice physical distancing of at least six feet, practice proper hand hygiene and avoid large crowds as much as possible. If someone is sick or thinks they may be sick, they need to stay home.
COVID-19 is spread through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes. It spreads between people who are in close contact with one another.
Symptoms of COVID-19 include:
- Fever or chills
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- Fatigue
- Muscle or body aches
- Headache
- New loss of taste or smell
- Sore throat
- Congestion or runny nose
- Nausea or vomiting
- Diarrhea
Someone experiencing these symptoms should seek medical attention. You can use virtual care options to seek medical treatment without exposing others to illness. Get more information about COVID testing.
For more information about COVID-19, visit our website at health.springfieldmo.gov/coronavirus.
