■ DEATHS:
County surpasses 300 total cases so far, 56 hospitalized
Four people died from the coronavirus over the weekend in Orange County, a health official says; one of those patients was from New Jersey visiting family, and three were from the region.
Four more people died in Orange County from the novel coronavirus last weekend, though they weren’t county residents and won’t be counted in Orange’s official stats, a health official said Monday.
Of those four, one was a traveler in town from New Jersey to visit family, said Dr. Raul Pino, local health officer for the Florida Department of Health. The other three were from elsewhere in Central Florida, he said.
Orange County reached 300 confirmed virus cases by late Monday with 56 people hospitalized. Hospital systems here aren’t yet stressed like those in New York, the U.S. epicenter of the outbreak. But Orange County hasn’t yet reached the peak in the outbreak, with local officials stressing the region will see worse days before better ones, and reiterating the need for more supplies.
“We’re not like that,” said Dr. Christian Zuver, the county’s EMS Medical Director, of comparisons to hospitals in more stressed areas. “But we’re preparing that it could come. We have prepared for the worst possible scenario.”
“We have supplies now,” he added. “We can’t be frivolous with their use.”
Also on Monday, officials in Lake County put in place an order to mandate social-distancing in the smaller county to Orange’s north that is home to scenic Mount Dora and a portion of mega-senior development, The Villages.
The Lake order mirrors one Seminole County leaders issued on Friday.
Group meetings must be limited to ten people or less, store checkout lines must be marked so people stand at least six feet apart, and businesses must limit their occupancy to 30% of the maximum allowable capacity under the fire code. Residences, hotels and medical facilities are exempt.
As those restrictions took effect Monday in Seminole County, county officials said they issued only two warnings.
“Our businesses are actually doing what we asked them to do,” Seminole Commission Chairman Jay Zembower said during an afternoon press conference. “Businesses want to do the right thing.”
In Orange County, health officials said they are able to spot trends as more data becomes available now that testing sites are open at the Orange County Convention Center and the state health department’s testing site on Alafaya Trail. More results from private hospitals and labs are also helping, Pino said.
He said, for example, the eight TSA workers at Orlando International Airport who have tested positive are considered a cluster. At least some of the transportation security officers lived together.
Orlando has more cases than anywhere else in the state outside of Miami-Dade or Broward counties. Orlando has the fourth-highest number of cases at 300.
Pino said the average age of infected people in Orange has lowered to 45, a sign that younger people are getting it in larger numbers.
Orange County Sheriff John Mina said he’s made no arrests for people violating the county’s stay-athome order, though some businesses deemed “nonessential” have remained open in violation of the policy. He said his deputies were called to several salons and barber shops — which have since agreed to close down — and his staff also spoke with the corporate office of an arts and crafts business that was remaining open. That business, which he didn’t name, agreed to close as well.
Deputies also were called to several parties or gatherings of young people.
Demings said he’s heard from numerous people in the county calling for stricter lockdown of the county to prevent the spread, but he said that takes preparations as to not disrupt food supply chains. For now, he’s sticking with the current order, which he called a “measured approach.
Zuver, the EMS Director, said more people staying home will help protect first responders from unneeded exposure.
“We’ll do our part,” he said. “We just ask that you stay home for us.”