Disaster Declaration Proclaimed for Effingham County

A disaster declaration has been proclaimed for Effingham County.

The declaration was proclaimed by Effingham County Board Chairman Jim Niemann at the conclusion of Monday's board meeting.

Niemann said he took the action to qualify the County for additional funding and logistical support in battling the COVID-19 pandemic. He said the number of people who pass through Effingham County daily motivated him to act. 

While Niemann could proclaim the disaster declaration for one week, the Board authorized a continuance of the declaration until the next County Board on April 20.

Niemann's action follows Cumberland County Board Chairman Roy Clapp's proclamation of a disaster declaration there for one week following a positive COVID-19 test in that county.

The Effingham County Health Department will serve as the lead agency as far as addressing the COVID-19 threat. Niemann said they will work in concert with the City of Effingham, other local communities, and the state and federal governments.

During his remarks, Niemann took issue with the "hoarding" exhibited by some who cleaned the shelves of some stores regardless of how many items they actually needed and also commended the stores that have self-imposed limits on how many items people could purchase.

(HERE IS THE WORDING OF THE EFFINGHAM COUNTY DISASTER DECLARATION)

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Health Department Administrator Jeff Workman and Emergency Coordinator Karen Feldkamp spoke at the opening of the Board meeting on the status of the fight against the coronavirus.

Workman said it is reasonable to assume there are positive cases of COVID-19 in the county, regardless of whether a positive test has been produced. Feldkamp said the information they are sharing can change "every hour, every day, every week."

Feldkamp also said as many of the Health Department staff as possible are working from home in an effort to keep them healthy, as they are the caregivers. She also said the early assumption that the virus would only affect the elderly has "gone out the window".