Over the weekend, the City of Hattiesburg’s administrative team learned that an employee in Public Works tested positive for COVID-19. The individual is currently hospitalized and has not been at work since Monday, March 23.
All workers in the employee’s division have been notified of the presumptive positive test. In an abundance of caution, the city will schedule a COVID-19 test for each employee in that division. The city will also continue to run daily screens for temperatures and symptoms of division employees at the beginning and end of each shift.
“Our personnel providing essential services - from fire and police to waste collection - are on the frontlines of this pandemic, and we are all adjusting and adapting as we continue delivering city services through this public health crisis,” Mayor Toby Barker said. “Since before our county’s first positive case, our administrative team has put several parameters and protocols in place to keep the health and safety of our community and our workforce a priority. This includes sanitization practices, PPE where necessary and temperature checks at the beginning and close of shifts. We know this is a tough time for our community, and we also know that more will get sick.”
Based on CDC guidelines and input from the Hattiesburg medical community, the city has implemented a planned workflow for any employee who is either symptomatic or had direct or indirect exposure. That information can be accessed at https://bit.ly/2vZaERC.
