Delaware County Officials: No New Cases Of Coronavirus, County Taking All Precautions To Prevent Spread Of Virus
MEDIA, Pa. (CBS) -- Delaware County officials said Saturday afternoon there are no new cases of coronavirus in the county, after reporting its first presumptive positive case of coronavirus on Friday. Officials say the county is taking all precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
"The best news we can report this afternoon is that there are no new cases in Delaware County," Delaware County Vice Chair Dr. Monica Taylor said Saturday during a press conference. "We have been working around the clock to ensure we are doing everything we can to protect our residents and prevent the spread."
According to a state elected official, the woman was treated at Crozer-Chester Medical Center.
She reportedly contracted COVID-19 from someone she knows while attending an event in Boston. The Pennsylvania Health Department is not releasing more information on where the woman lives.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is aggressively tracking down everyone this woman has been in most recent contact with.
"The Pennsylvania Department of Health has community nurses in Delaware County and in our community talking to residents who have been in contact with the woman who was presumed positive," Taylor said. "They are conducting aggressive contact tracing to identify the people this individual may have come in to contact with and alerting those individuals. They will quarantine when warranted and they will notify public locations when warranted."
The woman is now quarantined to her home.
"The CDC and Department of Health believe they know how this person got it. They're actively meeting with these people visiting the locations, so we're confident that matter is under control," Tim Boyce with Delaware County Emergency Services said.
The woman's location hasn't been made public, but officials say if you came in contact with her, you'll be notified by the state.
"If you had come in contact, they would've been contacted by the state," Taylor said.
Since the presumptive positive case, Delaware County officials say they have signed an emergency disaster declaration. The declaration will provide increased support to agencies, departments and local municipalities involved in the response to the virus.
"A declaration also provides council with the authority to act in the public interest with regard to scheduling public meetings and assemblies," Elaine Schaefer with the Delaware County Council said. "The declaration also ensures that the county can receive financial assistance from the state and federal government if needed."
Schaefer says at this time, the Pennsylvania Health Department and the CDC are not giving guidance for schools in the county to close. The decision to close would be made by the individual school district.
"Most schools are performing extra cleaning this weekend to ensure that their schools are germ-free as possible," Schaefer said.
Delaware County officials say they've been preparing for a local outbreak since January, when fears of coronavirus started spreading. They say there is a plan in place for a possible outbreak.
The Pennsylvania Department of Health is leading the investigation and response because Delaware County doesn't have its own Department of Health.
In the meantime, officials say do your due diligence.
"Everybody keep calm and wash your hands," Schaefer said.
The emergency declaration is in place for seven days with the possibility to extend if necessary.
County officials say they're working with the state to establish its own Department of Health.
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf announced two new presumptive positive coronavirus cases in Montgomery County, bringing the total number to four.
CBS3's Howard Monroe contributed to this report.
