March 16th COVID-19 WCOS/EOC Briefing

March 16th Wakulla EOC COVID-19 Evening Briefing & Info

The picture shown has counties highlighted with confirmed active COVID-19 cases.

Situation Summary:

On February 11, 2020 the World Health Organization announced an official name for the disease that is causing the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak, COVID-19. On March 11, 2020 COVID-19 was declared a pandemic outbreak.

Wakulla County Division of Emergency Management and the Florida Department of Health in Wakulla County are closely monitoring the situation and coordinating appropriately with all county agencies and key partners. The Florida Department of Health is the lead agency for this public health emergency and Wakulla County Emergency Management serves in support or our local health experts.

The numbers below my not be as accurate as we would like due to the fact we now we have local “private” testing sites. Although they are notifying local officials, there is a lag time getting the numbers to the Florida Department of Health (These numbers change quickly and frequently)

Confirmed Resident Cases: (Current) 131 (Change)+30
Florida Fatalities: (Current) 4 (Change)+0

Proclamations/Declarations:

03/01/2020 Governor’s Declaration of Public Health Emergency (Executive Order 20-51).
03/09/2020 Governor’s Declaration of State of Emergency (Executive Order 20-52)
03/13/2020 President Trump issued federal disaster declaration pursuant to Section 501(b) of the Stafford Act.
03/14/2020 State EOC moved from Partial Activation to Full Activation with 24 hour a day staffing.

Government Services and Protective Actions:

The Wakulla County Communications/9-1-1 Division has been given a list of recommended questions for calls involving respiratory Illness and similar complaints so that first responders can prepare accordingly.

Wakulla County School Board is developing a plan to feed students beginning Monday March 23. The district will be providing meals at designated schools in a curbside pick-up model during designated hours. There will be additional pick up sites identified in the community. School system personnel will also distribute educational packets for all students to continue their instruction at home during the quarantine.

The Wakulla Senior Citizen Center will be preparing lunches for all seniors enrolled in the lunch program. To obtain a lunch seniors must call Alissa at 850-888-1020 or Marquise at 850-888-1023 by 9am each day. The transportation system will continue its service for medical and other essential services.

Effective March 12, 2020 the Wakulla County Jail facility will not accept any Immigration detainees until further notice as a precautionary measure.

Department of Health will be using road signs to communicate preparedness measures to the public.

Governor DeSantis has directed the Department of Business and Professional Regulation Secretary Halsey
Beshears, in coordination with the Florida Department of Health, to issue social distancing guidance to
restaurants and bars.

Governor DeSantis directed all agencies to suspend for 30 days licensing and registration renewal requirements for existing processional licenses.

Currently all Florida State Parks and campgrounds, and Office of Resilience and Coastal Protection facilities
(aquatic preserves and National Estuarine Research Reserves), remain open to the public. However, in an
abundance of caution and consistent with Center for Disease Control and Prevention guidance, DEP
announced on March 13 that it is cancelling all events and activities at these facilities effective immediately
and until further notice.

Current Reported County Closures and Cancellations:

The Wakulla Wonderful Celebration has been postponed

Household Hazardous Waste Day scheduled for March 28, 2020 has been cancelled.

All Grand Jury Proceedings, jury selection proceedings, and all criminal and civil trials for the period March 16th-March 27th have been suspended.

Wakulla Students will not return from spring break until March 31st.

Eden Springs Nursing home has restricted all visitations to their facility to those critical to operations as of March 11, 2020.

Wakulla county Recreation Department activities, leagues and programs have been suspended until March 30th.

Wakulla 4-H suspended In-Person Programs through April 30, 2020.

UF/IFAS Extension Wakulla County Office is postponing all group related activities. This includes Master Gardener classes, annual plant sale, 4-H club meetings, cooking classes and other events through April 30,2020

The Wakulla Senior Center will be closed to all congregate meals and activities until further notice.

Health and Safety Briefing:

We continue to ask that you also take the following precautions to protect yourself, your employees, and your community:

Avoid mass gatherings.

Stay home when you are sick, except to get medical care.

Cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue, and then throw the tissue in the trash.

Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.

Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.

Clean frequently touched surfaces and objects daily.

Follow your agency’s Standard Operating Guidelines (SOG) and Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for PPE use, Infection Control, Infectious Exposure, and Respiratory Protection.