One firefighter positive, but coworkers are not; none have symptoms.
Scott
Due to an editing error, certain facts in the following story were incorrect in the print version of today’s Lake City Reporter. A corrected version follows.
A firefighter with Columbia County Fire Rescue is among the latest confirmed coronavirus cases in the area.
Another firefighter’s daughter was tested first, prompting four CCFR firefighters unrelated to her to undergo testing as well, said County Manager Ben Scott.
The group initially intended to travel out of town for testing but had the tests conducted in Columbia County, Scott said.
The daughter’s test was negative. However, one of the four firefighters did test positive, though neither he nor his coworkers showed any symptoms. Regardless, he self-quarantined.
The fire station was shut down for a day and sanitized, Scott said.
“We scrubbed the place down, following all the proper procedures and guidelines for the safety of our fire station,” Scott said.
As of Monday evening, 27 people in the county had tested positive for the virus, with cases involving people from as young as 1 year old to as old as 76, according to the Florida Department of Health.
Suwannee County was at 67 cases around the same time, involving people ages 5 to 90.
The latest Suwannee County case, which involves an 81-year-old man, is connected to at least one existing case there.
A number of Suwannee County cases have been traced back to an outbreak at Suwannee Health and Rehabilitation Center.
Of all Columbia County’s neighbors, Alachua County had the highest number of cases as of Monday evening, with a total of 183.