It starts as most rumors do. Misunderstanding of facts and events that get shared and altered until someone questions what is really going on.
In this case, there was talk in the community that 18 OSU police officers were being quarantine for COVID-19. This is not true, but what are the facts?
What we know through a case investigation is as follows:
- 15 Stillwater police officers are at a training. They are the only people at the facility.
- One of the 15 officers has a child who attends a day camp with another child who tested positive for COVID-19.
- This officer in question has not been contact with their child since Sunday. CDC says to be quarantined, someone needs face-to-face contact for at least 15 minutes with a person who tests positive for COVID-19.
- There are no OSU or Stillwater police officers in quarantine at this time.
According to the CDC, case investigation and contact tracing, a core disease control measure employed by local and state health department personnel for decades, is a key strategy for preventing further spread of COVID-19.
The State Department of Health released new numbers for Payne County today showing 27 active COVID-19 cases, which is more than previous weeks. View Stillwater’s dashboard here: https://looker-dashboards.ok.gov/embed/dashboards/79
Mayor Will Joyce posted this COVID-related message on his Facebook page June 12:
· Monday, June 8: 3 new cases
· Tuesday, June 9: 1 new case
· Wednesday, June 10: 3 new cases
· Thursday, June 11: 6 new cases
· Friday, June 12: 12 new cases
Total: 25 new COVID cases in Stillwater
This week alone, Stillwater has more new COVID cases than we had in March, April and May, combined. The second wave is here, and it’s spreading faster than the first.
This is very concerning, and clearly a factor of more residents back in Stillwater and more personal interaction among residents. Many, if not most, of these new cases are among young adults in our community. While this new outbreak has not resulted in substantial hospitalizations, I am worried that it is just a matter of time before these cases reach our more vulnerable populations.
YOU MUST DO YOUR PART TO KEEP OUR COMMUNITY SAFE. Even if you are young and healthy, you can catch COVID and you can spread COVID. You can give the disease to someone less resilient than you, and they can get very sick or even die.
Our local taskforce is meeting today to discuss the situation and potential responses. No matter what, each person in Stillwater needs to recognize the serious nature of this disease and choose to protect themselves and their neighbors by following CDC and state health guidelines. Wear a mask in public. Avoid crowded areas. Wash your hands frequently. Keep your distance from other people.
Love your neighbor. Stop the spread.
For more information, visit the City of Stillwater’s COVID-19 webpage at http://stillwater.org/page/breaking-news.
