By Otto Rodriguez
MiamiDadeHealth.com
The State of Florida has declared a public health emergency as it announced the first two confirmed cases of coronavirus (COVID-19), a menace that started in China late last December and has moved around the globe putting governments and communities on alert.
Florida Governor, Ron DeSantis spoke to the public in Tampa and Miami, two cities on both coasts of the State after two cases of the virus surfaced in Hillsborough and Manatee Counties, in the Tampa Bay area.
Though DeSantis said that the risk remained low and that his administration’s goal was to contain the spread of the virus, residents in high populated areas such as South Florida, Tampa, Sarasota, and Jacksonville have expressed concern about a possible epidemic in a State which economy depends heavily on tourism and travel-related activities.
DeSantis added that as a result of these two initial cases, a coronavirus Incident Management Team has been set up to receive daily updates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and coordinate a response to an outbreak. Florida, he said, has hundreds of Department of Health professionals ready to respond to potential patients.
Although the World Health Organization has declined to describe COVID-19 as a pandemic, it has spread to every continent but Antarctica and some infectious disease experts say that a significant fraction of the human population could become exposed to it in the coming year or two.
Other cases
The two Florida cases are the most recent in a string of cases originated in California, Oregon and Washington State. The virus has also surfaced in New York and Rhode Island.
According to some experts, the coronavirus has been circulating undetected and has possibly infected scores of people over the past six weeks in Washington state, according to a genetic analysis of virus samples.
Globally, the virus has affected tens of thousands of people and has hit hard particularly China, South Korea, Iran, and Italy. All over the world, around 3,000 deaths have been reported.
For questions related to coronavirus in Florida, contact the Department of Health’s COVID-19 Call Center by calling 1-866-779-6121. The call center is open Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
