While the county is working diligently with State and Federal agencies to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus it is important to understand that Tazewell County has had an Emergency Operations Plan prepared in conjunction with the Virginia Department of Emergency Management for many years.
Following the lead of many agencies like the VDEM, VDH, FEMA, CDC, and the U.S. Surgeon General, Tazewell County declared a local state of emergency on March 20th. At that point, operations changed to insure County government would continue during an outbreak.
Since then, all information gathered indicates that the best thing we can do is to follow the five steps below:
- Stay Clean. Wash your hands and do not touch your face.
- Stay Home. Restrict unnecessary travel and do not gather in crowds.
- Stay Informed. Go to: http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/coronavirus/ or https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html. If you do not have internet access you can call, 276-415-3430
- Stay Calm. Don't believe everything you see on the internet. Gather your information from credible sources, like the websites listed above. Also, do not spread information about he virus that is false or unproven.
- Stay Healthy. If you become ill, follow the instructions on the VSH site or follow the instructions given by your healthcare professional.
If you do get COVID-19, and are one of the many who will not need medical attention, stay home and anyway from family or others. Be considerate and take the proper steps to prevent it from spreading.