On the heels of declarations of a state of emergency issued by Missouri Gov. Mike Parson and U.S. President Donald J. Trump, Jefferson County Executive Dennis Gannon signed an executive order Friday evening (March 13) declaring a state of emergency in Jefferson County.
The order, which took effect at 6 p.m. Friday and will remain in place until noon on April 13 unless rescinded or extended, is a precaution in the face of the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19).
As of Saturday, there have been five confirmations of people in Missouri who have tested positive for the virus.
Gannon said two people in Jefferson County have been tested for COVID-19, but both results were negative.
While none of those confirmations have been reported in Jefferson County, the executive order states “it is likely the disease will eventually spread” here.
There are two confirmed cases in St. Louis County.
According to the executive order, all proceedings scheduled before the Jefferson County Municipal Court will be postponed and rescheduled.
"All other county functions will continue as usual for the time being, he said.
The executive order does not mention any other disruption in county services, but directs county government workers “to immediately initiate the provisions of low-touch, low-contact services to the greatest extent possible.”
Gannon said has been in frequent contact with Jefferson County Health Department Director Kelley Vollmar, and said they agree that for now, Jefferson County should not follow the lead of other nearby counties and restrict the number of people who can meet at one location.
"So far, Jefferson County has had no cases of coronavirus," Gannon said. "We believe that at this time, each organization needs to make its own determination on whether it should meet or restrict attendance. This ia a very fluid situation, and things are changing rapidly. But that's what we think is a practical solution at this time.
"We're acting very conservatively right now, but there are plans in place if additional action needs to be taken," he said.
The declaration allows the county and any other government entity, such as a school district, to try to recover losses caused by the virus from the federal and state governments, Gannon said.
Gannon said the executive order also asks all county residents to follow the directions of the Jefferson County Health Department and other county and state agencies.