Though positive test reports continue to flood in from around Florida near-daily, as of press time this past Tuesday, there were still no confirmed cases of the COVID-19 coronavirus inside Gadsden County.
Earlier this week, however, two Big Bend residents – one from Gadsden, the other from Leon – tested positive for the virus while in other states, each having recently returned from trips to Japan, according to a prepared statement issued by the Florida Department of Health. On Monday, state health officials received an alert that a 54-year-old Gadsden County man and a 59-year-old Leon County woman had both had been denied clearance to return home to Florida as a result of positive COVID-19 coronavirus test results.
Health officials have so far been tight-lipped on the details surrounding the case, with spokespersons declining to reveal where the man and woman are currently located, whether their cases are related, where and how they likely contracted the virus or when they’d be allowed to return to their homes. Based on nationally implemented pandemic control protocols, it is presumed both Floridians are in quarantine, though a Department of Health spokesperson would not confirm the inference.
A rumor that circulated last week regarding positive tests at Florida State Hospital is wholly false, a Florida Department of Children and Families spokesperson confirmed earlier this week.
As of Friday, the Florida Department of Health is reporting a single case of COVID-19 in Jackson County, involving a non-resident male; the case has been classified as “travel-related,” but further information is unavailable, with state officials declining comment on individual cases. In nearby Leon County, four COVID-19 cases, including one death as a result of the disease, are being reported by the Department of Health: two residents currently inside Leon County, the aforementioned resident currently outside of the county and one non-resident currently inside the county. All Leon County cases are “travel-related,” according to state data.
Special to The Herald
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