Wood County Emergency Management Agency’s Emergency Operation Center’s Situation Report on COVID-19 Response
This April 23 report communicates Wood County Emergency Operations Center’s activity over the past 24 hours.
Executive Summary:
Gov. Mike DeWine – Issued a clarification on hospital procedures/surgeries. We want doctors in Ohio to reach out to patients who had a case postponed to reassess the need for that surgery or procedure based on the earlier provided criteria. Current overall health condition and quality of life should be included in the judgement in regards to the risk. Patient and provider can jointly make the decision.
If you need emergency care or your condition is worsening call your doctor, go to the emergency room. We cannot open healthcare back open all at once, PPE is still a concern. This is a balance. This is a marathon not a sprint. Business announcement will be made on Monday.
Lt. Gov. Jon Husted – Jobs listed coronavirus.ohio.gov, with 50,000 jobs available. Businesses have been operating during this time if they are essential. They have been operating under a set of safety protocols that have been working well. We will continue to build on best practices and give people the information to empower themselves. Distance, disinfecting, and masking are our best tools. There will be strict standards to open, they won’t require anyone to open.
Dr. Weir – Focus on environment and the virus. If we can use the environment to kill the virus then it can’t get inside us and infect us. We want to interrupt this process. We can prevent a lot of this by disinfecting surfaces regularly. This is a team effort.
Masks – If you are wearing a mask you are protecting those around you and providing yourself an additional layer of protection. If you are the only one wearing a mask, you are protecting yourself and others around you because you aren’t expelling out pathogens. If everyone has a mask, every person is providing their own shield and this also serves to protect others. If you add in hand washing, careful touching of surfaces the outcome will be even better.
Distance – when I talk there is a cone of projection that comes out of me, there are a certain amount of particles that come out from my mouth whenever I am talking. When I cough and sneeze, there is a similar cone, then the infection goes into the air and then eventually falls. When talking about COVID-19 you are ejecting a wide range of particles that travel 6-10 feet depending on environmental conditions. Even if you are wearing a mask you should still keep that distance between each other, to have an additional barrier.
Ohio Confirmed Cases: 14,142
Ohio Probable Cases: 552
Ohio Total Confirmed plus Probable: 14,694
Ohio Hospitalizations: 2,960
ICU Admissions: 900
Ohio Confirmed COVID Deaths: 618
Ohio Probable COVID Deaths: 38
Wood County Cases (total plus probable): 103
Wood County Hospitalizations: 40
Wood County Long Term Care Cases: 57
Wood County Deaths: 15
County EOC Objectives:
1. Coordinate the county’s response to limit spread of COVID-19; and maintain medical care.
2. Provide timely, clear, and consistent messaging to the public, stakeholders and media on the status of COVID-19 and actions the public can take to keep themselves safe.
3. Determine how county agencies will continue delivery of essential services to Wood County residents while following COVID-19 public health guidelines.
4. Prevent, identify, mitigate, and respond to COVID19 hotspots within the county.
EMA:
An abbreviated version of this report can be found at: http://woodcountyema.org/covid-19/ .
Thank you to the citizens who have answered the call for help and donated homemade masks. Also, please contact us if you have PPE to donate, if you have any PPE needs or have any questions. EMA and public health have been reaching out to areas of concern and identified “hotspots” in the county to ensure their PPE supply is adequate to meet the needs of the situation. We continue to accept, inventory, and fulfill PPE resource requests.
Working with the Ohio EMA to secure additional PPE for the county. Ohio Emergency PPE Maker’s Exchange is an available online resource to share and purchase personal protective equipment created through the ingenuity of Ohio manufacturers who have answered the call to help. https://repurposingproject.sharetribe.com/
Public Health:
There are 14,142 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Ohio. There are 103 cases (total confirmed plus probable) presently in Wood County, 40 of those hospitalized, 57 in long term care, and 15 deaths.
Health department staff are answering calls regarding testing, essential business concerns, employee safety, the stay-at-home order and many other questions. Case follow-up and close contact tracing is being coordinated by a team of employees.
Wood County residents who feel they may have coronavirus are encouraged to complete a survey that will help local public health better track the illness. Wood County residents are asked to report coronavirus symptoms at https://tinyurl.com/WoodCountyCOVID19 .
Healthcare:
Please realize that our agency is continually taking in donations and pushing out resource requests. Our abilities change similar to your needs. Constant communication is needed with us to make sure your staff is safe. If we have told you we were low on something in previous communications, this can always change due to donations and procurement. Continue to check back with us. We are always looking for information on what is going on in your facility so we can anticipate future needs. woodcountyema@co.wood.oh.us .
Law Enforcement/Fire/EMS:
Many PPE requests have been submitted and addressed. If you have a need, please put in a formal request in writing to: woodcountyema@co.wood.oh.us . Please realize that our agency is continually taking in donations and pushing out resource requests. Our abilities change similar to your needs. Constant communication is needed. If we have told you we were low on something in previous communications, this can always change due to donations and procurement. Continue to check back with us.
Wood County Health Department is implementing a new procedure for testing symptomatic first responders or their immediate household family members through UTMC. Requests for testing must be sent by the Chief to FRCovid19@co.wood.oh.us
Job and Family Services:
The Wood County Department of Job and Family Services has stopped accepting requests for assistance through the COVID-19 Housing and Utility Assistance program at this time, it was announced Wednesday. If additional funds become available and the ability to accept new requests resumes, notification will be sent out to the community. Assistance is still being provided on a first come/first serve basis for those whose requests were received prior to Thursday. Assistance with current requests will continue until funds are exhausted or by order of the agency director. Those in need of rental assistance and facing eviction or those with a utility disconnection notice may still contact the agency at 419-373-6987.
Wood County Museum:
Virtual tours available at- http://www.woodcountyhistory.org/exhibits.html
Wood County Board of Elections:
If you haven’t already done so, it’s not too late to request an absentee ballot to vote by mail in the 2020 Primary Election. Request an absentee ballot or get find more information more at https://www.co.wood.oh.us/BOE/ OR https://VoteOhio.gov. Once you receive your ballot and fill it out, it must be postmarked by April 27 or it may be dropped off at the Wood County Board of Elections by 7:30 p.m. on April 28.
Wood County Commissioners:
Please Call Before You Come ‐ The Courthouse Complex remains open. However, access to many County offices and departments is restricted. To obtain phone numbers to county offices and departments, please access the county website: www.co.wood.oh.us. To obtain information by phone, please call (419)354‐9000 or 1‐866‐860‐4140 (toll free).
All visitors entering the Courthouse Complex should wear a mask, scarf, or other covering on their face prior to entering the building. This will become a requirement on Wednesday, April 29. Please be prepared for this. Wood County is unable to provide masks to visitors.
Public session of the board of commissioners will occur on Tuesdays at 9:15 a.m. Thursday session meetings are cancelled at this time.
Wood County Landfill:
The Landfill is operating and accepting traffic from commercial haulers, contractors/businesses and municipalities, however the individual public drop‐off is closed at least through May 1, 2020.
Wood County Residential Recycling Drop‐Off Sites:
The Wood County Residential Recycling Drop‐Off Sites are open. If the bins are full, the site is closed. The bins are emptied weekly on Wednesday. To obtain information about the residential recycling program and rules of operation, please access the Solid Waste District website: www.recyclewoodcounty.org
National
This year’s National Work Zone Awareness Week is on April 20-24, and serves as an important reminder that, despite a global public health emergency, construction is moving forward on America’s roads. Drivers should always be mindful of workers in highway construction areas throughout the year. In 2018, the most recent year for which data are available, 754 people died in highway work-zone crashes.
McDonalds is giving out free “Thank you Meals” starting Wednesday, to show their appreciation. The offer lasts through Tuesday, May 5. Healthcare workers and first responders can get a free breakfast, lunch, or dinner by showing their work badge or ID.
Local
The Village of Walbridge Community Pool will not open for the 2020 season. This is not an easy decision, nor will be popular – but due to the Coronavirus (Covid19), the pool will remain closed this year.
Administrative Information:
Any information and contributions your agency has for this report is valuable to maintain a common operating picture and situational awareness for the county as a whole.
Please reach out to our office via phone or email (email preferred) to share information.
EOC Hours of Operation: 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Requesting support: Call Wood County EMA at 419-354-9269 or email
woodcountyema@co.wood.oh.us
ODH Call line: 1-833-4-ASK-ODH (1-833-427-5634)
www.coronavirus.ohio.gov
