Riverside County Public Health Officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser declared a local health emergency today, citing the county’s first locally acquired case of COVID-19 that was announced yesterday.
“The public health emergency declaration will support the county’s planning and response efforts and is a signal to the community that the disease has been introduced to the area,” said Kaiser.
County officials activated the medical health department operations center earlier this week to better coordinate public messaging and planning among community partners as county officials prepare for the spread of the illness.
The emergency declaration is set to be ratified by the Riverside County Board of Supervisors at the board’s regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday, March 10.
The county has two COVID-19 cases overall. The other case is a Riverside County resident who was a former passenger on the Diamond Princess cruise ship. That individual is recovering at a medical facility in Northern California and has not returned to Riverside County since leaving the cruise ship, officials said.
