COVID 19 INFORMATION

21 April 2020

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To:   Citizens of Geneva, Alabama

 

From:  Mayor Frankie Lindsey

 

Subject:  Coronavirus

 

I want to take this opportunity to convey to you some facts concerning the Covid-19 situation within our community and some personal thoughts of mine, as your Mayor.

 

Please know that the coronavirus cannot keep us stuck in our homes forever.  Someday our kids will go back to school, we will return to work, and our families and friends will gather once again for birthdays, holidays, weddings and funerals.  We will see the movies in the theaters and scream like crazy in packed stadiums.  The real question is “How will we ever trust the coronavirus, our unseen enemy not to infect us at every opportunity”?

 

There are so many unknowns about the virus.  This mess has only been around us for four months, circulating in the human population. I personally believe the stay-at-home order will be lifted before a vaccine is found—an endeavor that could take another year at least.

 

Some thoughts of a safe transition; (1) There must be a drastic reduction in the number of new infections confirmed each day before they begin to “really” relax current restrictions, testing capacity must increase dramatically. (2) A safe return to normal life is going to be incremental and then you will see (slowly) our schools, shops, and restaurants begin to re-open. And with this being said, we will be living in a new reality for several months- not quite lockdown conditions, yet not quite normalcy. (3) Our health officials believe that masks will be worn for a long time. The primary benefit, as you know, is not to protect the wearer from getting sick, but to keep asymptomatic people from accidentally passing on the disease.

 

Please remember, if we resume normal life too soon, the chances of seeing a second wave are higher.  However, our local health authorities may be able to manage them by carefully tracking everyone an infected person comes into contact with, testing those people for the virus and quarantining them if they are sick.

 

Ultimately, this “war” will end when a sufficient percentage of the population has immunity to the disease, either because they’ve already had it, recovered or because they get a vaccine making them immune.

 

In closing, I want to make a statement to you, our citizens of Geneva, Alabama.  This coronavirus has been with us for approximately four months and it has thrown global health and economic systems into chaos.  Airports around the world are empty and millions sit at home in mandatory quarantine.  International markets are crashing at a scale reminiscent of the 2008 banking crisis, and financial experts warn of worse to come.  More immediately, people are losing their jobs (income).

 

Yet, as the Mantra goes, “out of crisis comes opportunity”.  The opportunity is to learn a few essentials about life in the 21st century.  About the state of humanity, our relationship with one another and with the Earth.  Covid-19 has led to some unexpected, and even desirable, trends.  If we can overcome the disease, yet hold on to these trends, a stronger human society may yet emerge.  In the spirit of this crisis brings opportunity. 

 

Here are a few interim positive trends, (some of them lifesaving) to consider as we, as a community continue to collectively face the on-going threat of Covid-19.

 

Emergency Preparedness- Be prepared for the future.  In this way, you protect yourself and your community. Keep supplies handy, it’s your civic duty.

 

Personal Hygiene:  Knowledge about hand washing and sneezing/coughing in your elbow has been around for hundreds of years. We should have been doing this way before the Covid-19 came to us.  Use common sense, wash your hands!!!!!!!!! Use sanitizer, soon there will be plenty to go around.

 

Clean Air:  Be aware of the pollutants in the air; use your masks that you have and wear them without being told to. (This means after the coronavirus has left us.)

 

Geography Lessons:  The news agencies throughout the United States have given us a geography lesson concerning countries that we have never heard of before.  Stay in touch with the internet and the American news agencies. They are the life line of information about important issues that affect us during any crisis.

 

Public Health Experts:  After listening to the health experts, I have a new found respect for our health care associates. Doctors, nurses, and all other health personnel are now getting much deserved credit for their role in saving our lives.

 

Science and our leaders who listen to it:  For four months now, our Federal, State and Local leaders have finally decided to listen to the experts of science which has brought a greater respect for the connection between people and Nations; we will outlast this miserable Covid-19.

 

Please know that it is an Honor being your Mayor and if I can ever be of any assistance to you, please do not hesitate to call on me at any time.