ATLANTA – The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Georgia climbed over the weekend as state officials await arrival of passengers from a cruise ship where the virus spread who will be quarantined at Dobbins Air Reserve Base in metro Atlanta.
So far, state health officials have confirmed five people in Georgia tested positive for the respiratory virus, which quickly spread following outbreaks in China and other countries.
Another six people have tested presumptive positive for COVID-19 and are awaiting confirmation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, likely increasing the total count to 11 cases.
Meanwhile, 34 passengers from Georgia and “additional American citizens” aboard the Grand Princess cruise ship off the California coast are set to be transferred to the Marietta-based air reserve base late Monday or early Tuesday, according to Gov. Brian Kemp’s office.
Dozens of passengers on the ship have tested positive for the virus. In a news release, the governor assured the base “is equipped to provide high-quality care for Americans in need while keeping Georgia families safe.”
“We must continue to support one another, trust the advice of the medical community and remain vigilant,” Kemp said.
Kemp’s office also announced Monday state officials are preparing Hard Labor Creek State Park in Morgan County as a quarantine site for people who contract coronavirus. Part of the roughly 5,000-acre park will serve as a site for emergency isolation trailers, seven of which have already been installed.
Georgia joined a growing list of states with confirmed COVID-19 cases earlier this month after a father and his son from Fulton County tested positive for the virus following the father’s trip to Milan, Italy.
The novel strain of coronavirus is thought to spread largely by “respiratory droplets” when someone coughs or sneezes after symptoms are present, according to the CDC. Symptoms appear within 14 days of contraction and include fever, coughing and shortness of breath.
The additional confirmed cases in Georgia come after the state lab received more than 2,500 test kits from the federal government last week. Georgia Public Health Commissioner Dr. Kathleen Toomey said Friday the risk is still low for an outbreak in the state.
But more positive test results are expected as testing ramps up, Toomey said. She and other officials stress the need for calm, to avoid panicking and to use common-sense sanitary practices like washing hands and covering one’s mouth when coughing or sneezing.
Amid news of the growing number of COVID-19 cases, Georgia Insurance Commissioner John King directed insurance companies in the state to remove coverage hurdles for testing and treatment of the virus.
“Now that there have been confirmed cases of coronavirus in Georgia, it is essential that we are doing everything we can to remove any potential barriers to care for our Georgia citizens,” King said.