The Manitowoc County Emergency Services Department has been following the news surrounding the Coronavirus for the past couple of months, but since it has made it’s way to surrounding Counties, preparations are beginning to really take shape.
One thing that was done earlier this week, was County Executive Bob Zigelbauer declared a Public Health Emergency for the County. Emergency Services Director Travis Waack spoke with SeehaferNews.com and explained that “What that really means is that frees up the resources of the County and County Departments to be all hands on deck in preparing for any Coronavirus cases we may eventually have in the county.”
Waack has been meeting with the hospitals and other local entities to make sure they are prepared for any potential influx of patients, but also internally within the department.
He is also working to ensure the County Departments are all ready to go as well. “You think about some of the critical services that we provide, everything from Meals on Wheels to the jail, to the Sheriff’s Office, 911, and all those things. We have to make sure those services continue.”
While as of now there aren’t any confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Manitowoc County, that doesn’t mean it’s time for the Emergency Services Department to relax. There are confirmed cases in Sheboygan, Fond du Lac and Outagamie Counties, so to Waack, it almost seems inevitable that a case will pop up here.
A major topic in national media is this idea of “flattening the curve”, or basically spreading out the timing of when cases become confirmed. Waack said, “What we can’t have happen is to have a whole bunch of people get the virus all at once.” If this were to happen hospitals would be overloaded with patients, and some could not receive the help they need, resulting in a higher death rate than if the cases are spread out over a period of time.”
Waack explained that the best way to “flatten the curve” is by continuing to practice good hygiene, and by practicing social distancing. He said “All that stuff is going to prevent the virus from spreading quickly, and creating a lot of cases all at one time.” While it sounds easy on paper, Waack says it is anything but.
“What becomes difficult,” he explained, “is when they have to cancel plans that are very important and personal to them. It may have been kinda funny and easy to go out and buy toilet paper or stock up on hand sanitizer…Now when we start to have to cancel plans that mean a lot to us, that is when it becomes difficult for a lot of people.”
The last time there was such a major event that swept the nation quite like this was on September 11th, 2001. Waack says that while these situations are vastly different, there is one major lesson we can learn from that event nearly 20 years ago. Waack said “Probably a good lesson we can learn from 9/11 and can compare to today is the unification that we saw as a country. I think that is very important for us right now…Put politics aside, put our differences aside and really unify as a country and fight the spread.”
For more information on how you can fight the spread of COVID-19 go to the Manitowoc County Website.
