Off the Streets and Back at Home

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Month-long order issued to remain home

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  • The streets in downtown Palatka are empty Wednesday.
    The streets in downtown Palatka are empty Wednesday.
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On the same day Putnam County’s COVID-19 cases increased to 14, Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a statewide stay-at-home executive order mandating people should only leave their homes for essential business. 

The statewide order, which was announced Wednesday, begins 12:01 a.m. Friday and will remain in place until April 30 unless extended further. 

“Even though there are a lot of places in Florida that have very low infection rates, it makes sense to make this move now,” DeSantis said during a news conference. 

DeSantis defined “essential activities” as:

– Attending religious services conducted in churches, synagogues and houses of worship.

– Participating in recreational activities – consistent with social distancing guidelines – such as walking, biking, hiking, fishing, hunting, running or swimming.

– Taking care of pets.

– Caring for or otherwise assisting a loved one or friend.

The order stated safe distancing practices are still in effect and gatherings should be with 10 or fewer people.

The governor’s announcement came hours before Putnam County officials said a 54-year-old Palatka man became the 14th person in the county diagnosed with coronavirus. 

As of Wednesday night, state Department of Health information released earlier that day still listed the number of positive cases in Putnam at 13.

Palatka Mayor Terrill Hill stressed the importance of residents following stay-at-home orders and said the city may host a virtual town hall meeting next week. 

Putnam County Board of Commission Chairman Terry Turner said the county is still under a state of emergency and he expects to extend the county’s order Friday. 

County spokesman Jim Troiano said the county is looking to hold meetings online, starting with the Board of County Commissioners meeting April 14 and followed by the Zoning Board of Adjustment meeting April 15. 

As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, the number of positive cases in the county held steady at 13, according to floridadisaster.org. The website also stated 305 people have been tested locally with 287 coming back negative and five pending. 

According to the website, Florida’s positive cases totaled 6,955 with 87 deaths in the state. 

The Putnam County School District is changing its methods of operation due to the governor’s order.

Superintendent Rick Surrency said students who may have to enter school buildings on special occasions and faculty will have their temperature taken before they enter any school district building. He also said employees who are older than 65 or have pre-existing health conditions will have to do their job remotely starting Friday.

“We’re going to work with those employees to try to find duties they can do from home,” Surrency said.

According to Allison Waters-Merritt, Putnam County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman, local law enforcement will continue disbanding large gatherings. She said deputies were patrolling the St. Johns River last weekend and plan to do so this weekend.

“Even prior to this order, we were planning on being on the water again to try to encourage people to maintain social distancing,” Waters-Merritt said.

Waters-Merritt said the sheriff’s office doesn’t plan to have extra patrols due to the order but will continue to meet throughout the week to make sure deputies are meeting the needs of Putnam residents.

“At this time, we haven’t really changed anything in how we’re doing business from a law enforcement standpoint,” she said.

 

Reporter Emanuel Griffin contributed to this story.