Official: COVID case closes Perrot Library in Greenwich.
GREENWICH — The Perrot Memorial Library in Old Greenwich has temporarily been closed after a staff member tested positive for the coronavirus.
The library made its announcement on Twitter on Thursday afternoon. Director Kevin McCarthy said that he hopes to reopen the Perrot Library after a deep cleaning this weekend.
“We had a staff member who took a test earlier in the week and it came back positive this morning,” McCarthy said. “In accordance with the recommendations of the (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and the town of Greenwich’s Department of Health, we automatically closed the library, communicated with all the staff and posted the announcement. We have arranged for a thorough deep cleaning of the library scheduled for this Sunday.”
Once the cleaning is done, McCarthy said he would consult with town Director of Health Caroline Baisley before the reopening, which he hopes will happen on Monday.
Staff members have been encouraged to get tested for COVID-19 and not return to work until they have received results, he said.
“Hopefully, everyone else will be negative,” McCarthy said.
Perrot has never fully reopened after closing its building to patrons back in March. The library has allowed patrons to make online reservations of materials from its collection and pick them up at an appointed time. It has also allowed patrons to make reservations to use the library’s computers.
But it has not allowed patrons to come in and browse the collection since the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
As part of the closure, the no-contact book pickup will be put on hold, McCarthy said. It will resume once the library has reopened.
Books can be returned to the library, which keeps them in quarantine for four days before anyone else can check them out. Once a book is taken out of quarantine, it is wiped down before it goes back into circulation.
“Everything we are doing is in accordance with CDC guidelines and the town’s Health Department,” McCarthy said. “People can be assured that they can’t catch COVID from checking out a book at Perrot Library.”
The Perrot Memorial Library operates independently and is not a branch of the Greenwich Library.
The library’s website is www.perrotlibrary.org.