Dare Chairman Strongly Encourages Wearing Face Masks to Fight COVID-19 Spread
Following a meeting yesterday (6/11/20) with the six municipal mayors of the Outer Banks, as well as the Superintendent of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore and the Dare County Sheriff, Dare County Board of Commissioners Chairman Bob Woodard has released a video message for the Dare County community in which he strongly recommends wearing cloth face masks/coverings whenever in public to help slow the spread of COVID-19.
“On Thursday, we met for the 42nd time since the COVID-19 outbreak (began),” said Woodard in the video. “It had been almost a month since the last meeting and the topic yesterday was specifically face masks and whether they should be mandatory. After receiving feedback from our citizens, I thought it was important to bring the group together to discuss this issue and reach a consensus. The group determined that the wearing of face masks will continue to be strongly encouraged but not mandatory. The main reason for this is the inability to enforce a mandatory mask requirement.”
Woodard continues, “We have had 10 new cases of COVID 19 since allowing visitors to return to the Outer Banks on May 16. During this same time we have had nearly 800,000 visitors to the Outer Banks and I am thankful that the numbers have stayed relatively low. We must all remain vigilant and do our part to keep the numbers low. Wearing a mask, requiring masks in your local business, practicing social distancing and frequently washing our hands are proactive steps we can all take to protect our safety and the health of our community.”
The latest press release from the Dare County Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) also stresses the importance of the 3 Ws, as everyone is again asked to please continue to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 in the local community by following the 3 Ws – wear a cloth face covering if you will be with other people, wait 6 feet apart and avoid close contact with other people, and wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds or use hand sanitizer.
The number of positive COVID-19 tests in Dare County has remained at 32 since June 7. Some of the trends that the Dare DHHS seen in recent cases include:
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Some acquired the virus by direct contact with an asymptomatic positive case.
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The spread of the virus occurred quickly among family members and members within the same household.
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There is an increase in the number of direct contacts associated with the recent positive cases.
You can watch Woodard’s full remarks in the video below.
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