The Peru Gazette

Plattsburgh, March 25, 2020. As of Wednesday morning, the Clinton County Health Department (CCHD) is reporting nine confirmed cases of COVID-19; eight of these cases are community residents and one is an inmate at Clinton Correctional Facility.

To date, ninety tests have come back negative. Eighty-one residents are in quarantine without symptoms and ten are isolated due to symptoms or positive test results. Many more individuals are also self-quarantining or self- isolating based upon general recommendations for anyone who suspects they may have been exposed or are having symptoms, even if they have not been tested.

As of Monday, Clinton County Government Departments including Public Health, Emergency Services, and Law Enforcement expanded the unified incident command. In recognition of the breadth of the impact of COVID-19 across all sectors of community life, county partners have expanded the command and operational model. Eric Day, Director of the County’s Office of Emergency Services; Sheriff Dave Favro; Mark Henry, Chairman of the Clinton County Legislature; and John Kanoza, Director of Public Health, now share the duties of Incident Commander.

“Over the years (since 9/11), organizations and individuals in our county, across the state and across the nation have been trained in applying the Incident Command System (ICS) to all types of situations, including public health emergencies. The Incident Command System is the formal process used by firefighters to maintain effectiveness in any situation,” stated Mr. Kanoza. The ICS allows for expansion as needed and a smooth transition back to day-to-day operations at the end of an incident. “Moving forward, updates from CCHD will include information from other County entities as we all work together to address issues and resident concerns over COVID-19.”

Sheriff Favro reminded residents and businesses that in New York State, Governor Cuomo has prohibited non- essential gatherings. Individuals and businesses should not promote activities that cause people to congregate. In response to questions about enforcement, Sheriff Favro noted, “while law enforcement may have other priorities at the moment, information gathered now may be used in the future with a possibility of civil penalties against individuals and businesses that refuse to comply.”

All local public health and governmental entities continue to reiterate that in order to combat the spread of COVID-19 in our community, residents must stay home as much as possible.