Closing the rodeo

Re: “The power and peril of principle” ( A15, Jan 31): Sunday’s article is factually incorrect about the decision-making to close the Houston Rodeo. The entire NRG complex is within the jurisdiction of the city of Houston. As such the responsibility to apply public health disease mitigation efforts such as issuing a health order to quarantine the property is the responsibility of the Local Health Authority for the city of Houston.

On the evening of March 10, I was notified of a gentleman who was diagnosed with COVID-19 and had no travel history, nor contact with one of the Egyptian river cruise cases we had already been managing. This case represented the first occurrence of local spread of COVID-19 in the Houston area. In addition, the gentleman had been working security at the HLSR barbecue cook-off.

I immediately called Mayor Turner and we agreed, without hesitation, that the responsible course of action was to issue the control order to close the Rodeo. I then called the leadership of the Rodeo to tell them of the decision. The order was signed and the rodeo was closed as of noon the next day. No official from Harris County was involved in the decision to close the rodeo.

While this decision was painful, it was made quickly, forthright and without reluctance.

Dr. David Persse, chief medical officer, city of

Houston

Corrections: Due to an editing error, an essay on Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, published Sunday, Jan. 31 in the Outlook section, erroneously indicated that Mayor Sylvester Turner hesitated to close the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo after community spread became clear. While Hidalgo had argued for closure internally to county officials prior to the confirmation of community spread, Turner did not hesitate to close the rodeo once community spread was confirmed. We regret the error. We’d also like to clarify that the ultimate call on closing the rodeo was the mayor’s, not the county judge’s.

A letter published Sunday, Jan. 31 on climate change and national security was misattributed to Louise Talen. It was written by Terry Hansen of Hales Corners, Wis.