By DAVID DUPONT
BG Independent News
As students head home for Thanksgiving, Bowling Green State University’s chief health officer had a small serving of good news.
Ben Batey said that the university has seen cases drop off in the last few days. The numbers, though, are not in. Batey was delivering his weekly COVID-19 video update a couple days early on Monday evening. The BGSU dashboard will be updated on schedule Wednesday evening.
Though things may be looking up at BGSU, he warned students heading ff campus “to be mindful of what’s happening in other regions and other states” and to put into practice those protocols that have helped keep the virus under control on campus.
That means keeping a safe distance and wearing face coverings and wearing face coverings when with people outside of their household.
Batey said though cases are declining, there are still instances where people are dismissing the symptoms of COVID as being just a seasonal allergy or the common cold, so they continuing going about their usual activities, potentially spreading the virus.
“If you’re showing any symptoms have your Thanksgiving virtually,” Batey said.
The area experienced an increase in cases after Halloween. “We don’t want to see the same after Thanksgiving, especially as we approach Christmas and New Year’s,” he said.
“We have proven on campus that we can control this virus if we follow the protocols we’ve set in place,” he said. That’s important so students can come back to campus in January “and have a successful spring semester.”
Students will now finish the semester working remotely.
Batey said he’s thankful for the work faculty, staff, and students have done to keep their friends and families safe.
