Delaware County Declares A State of Emergency

Chairperson of the Delaware County Board of Supervisors, Tina Molé, and Delaware County Director of Public Health, Amanda Walsh, clarify the current State of Emergency Declaration and important information regarding COVID-19 (Cornoa Virus).
Delaware County Public Health
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Delaware County has declared a state of emergency, effective Saturday, March 14 through Monday, April 13. County Department of Health Director Amanda Walsh issued a press release Saturday night. announcing that the decision was made, with her recommendation, in response to COVID-19.

A video was also posted on the county health department's website with more information, but Walsh said Saturday night that the site was overloaded. 

Tina Mole, Chair of the Board of Delaware County, ordered all public schools to close except for administration and staff functions starting at midnight on Wednesday March 18 until midnight on April 14, with the possibility of either a longer or shorter closure.

Delaware County Office for the Aging Senior Meal sites and Senior Transit will stop operations immediately, and for now, are to stay closed until April 14. The department stressed it has developed a backup plan to provide meals and shopping assistance to those who need it. Regular users of the senior transit who rely on it for shopping will be offered shopping assistance to be sure they have enough food in their homes.

UHS Delaware Valley Hospital announced Sunday that beginning Monday, March 15, it would no longer allow visitors to the hospital in response to concerns about the virus.

In addition, DMCO BOCES District Superintendent Perry Dewey issued a release Saturday night noting that Otsego County schools are closing Monday and Delaware County schools will be closing Wednesday. Chenango County, he said, has not yet made a decision.

Dewey announced that on Monday, March 16 BOCES will hold a staff emergency conference day to discuss “critical issues” such as school lunch food distribution plans, parent communications, support for students with special needs, and  staff preparation to support students in the event of an extended closure.

There is currently one confirmed case of COVID-19 in Delaware County, but the county has not issued any further information.

The state reported on Saturday that two people have died in New York from the virus – one in New York City and one in Rockland County.

For general information about COVID-19 please call the New York State Department of Health 24/7 hotline at 1-888-364-3065. For more information about COVID-19 you can visit www.delawarecountypublichealth.com, https://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/communicable/coronavirus/ and https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/index.html