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In Lynn, 3 deaths, 264 cases of coronavirus confirmed
LYNN — There have been three deaths and 264 confirmed cases from the coronavirus in the city as of Monday, according to the city’s Department of Public Health.
Mayor Thomas M. McGee is now recommending that all residents wear cloth or homemade face masks if they have to leave their homes.
The patients have been instructed to self-quarantine and officials from the city’s health department will continue to monitor positive cases and conduct extensive tracing investigations.
Anyone who has been confirmed to have come into direct contact with those who have tested positive has been or will be notified by their local Board of Health.
“If you really want to support healthcare workers, first responders and other essential employees, please stay home,” said McGee in a statement. “The actions we are asking you to take now and over the course of the next several weeks will help curb the spread of this virus and save lives.
“If you have to go out to pick up essential items, make sure you practice social distancing and stay six feet away from others at all times, wear a mouth and face covering and continue to wash your hands often. We will get through this together as we continue toward mitigating community spread of COVID-19 and flattening the curve.”
Social distancing, as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) continues to be the primary strategy to reduce the spread of the coronavirus.
Keeping with new CDC guidelines, McGee is now asking residents to use a cloth or homemade face covering over their mouth and nose if they have to leave their homes, including for walks and other passive recreational activities, in order to preserve medical grade face masks for healthcare workers.
The CDC estimates that nationally, 25 percent of people infected with COVID-19 are asymptomatic, and may not know they are a carrier of the virus, or that they could be infecting others.
The coronavirus is spread mainly through person-to-person contact. It’s believed that people who are in close contact, or within six feet of each other are more likely to spread it.