The following Letter to the Editor was written by Alexandria Fire Chief Corey Smedley.
Like every emergency, the Alexandria Fire Department approached this pandemic with the mindset that we will win the fight, no matter the circumstances – and that is NON-NEGOTIABLE. We have found the courage to redefine ourselves and think outside of the box to try new things in response to something we have never faced before.
There are now 754 cases of COVID-19 in Alexandria, an increase of 54 cases since yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.
That is the largest jump in new or probable cases since the first case was announced in the city on March 11. No additional deaths were reported. The city broke the 700 case mark yesterday.
In an update to the City Council, Dr. Stephen Haering said Alexandria is making a clearer picture of which populations are most vulnerable to COVID-19.
“We’ve not reached the peak,” Haering said in a city council meeting Tuesday night. “We haven’t seen a decrease in cases. The number of daily cases still on the rise. The numbers here bounce around in the 20s to 30s.”
Another person has died and there are now 700 Cases of COVID-19 in Alexandria, an increase of 47 cases since yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.
That is the largest jump in new or probable cases since the first case was announced in the city on March 11, and the city is asking residents to continue to stay home except for essential trips to the pharmacy, doctor or grocery store.
Another person has died and there are now 653 cases of COVID-19 in Alexandria, an increase of 26 cases since yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.
There are now 20 COVID-19-related fatalities in Alexandria, and the most recent death was a male in his 80s. Additionally, the VDH and city incorrectly reported that a nineteenth person died in Alexandria, and amended their figures to show that there were 18 deaths as of yesterday. That means that there are, in fact, two additional deaths — if the 20 fatalities listed by VDH are accurate.
The little boy in the blue hooded jacket cried out as a long cotton swap poked deep into his nostril.
It only took a second on a recent afternoon, as his masked mother held him inside a Neighborhood Health COVID-19 testing facility outside Casa Chirilagua on Mount Vernon Avenue in Arlandria. The boy and his mother made an appointment for him online and walked to the site, checked in with staff wearing protective gear and walked over to the tent with a plexiglass shield separating them from the health official.
Alexandria now has 627 probable or positive cases of COVID-19, an increase of 36 cases since yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.
There have been more than 300 new or probable cases in the last 10 days alone in Alexandria.
There are now 19 COVID-19-related fatalities in Alexandria, according to VDH. There have been 10 male deaths and nine female deaths, and the most recent death was a woman. A majority of the fatalities have been senior citizens, although the most infected residents are in their 30s and 40s.
There have been 309 females and 278 males who tested positive for COVID-19 in the city, and it is not clear how many people have recovered. There have been more than 500 probable and new cases reported in the city this month alone.
Three more people have died and there are now 575 probable or positive cases in Alexandria, an increase of 28 cases since yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.
The Alexandria Health Department is also now warning residents against ingesting disinfectants, after President Trump suggested that doing so could eradicate the coronavirus. The department cited the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s warning that disinfectants should never be ingested or mixed.
In a video town hall last night (Thursday), Mayor Justin Wilson said there were five outbreaks — places where the virus was spread between several people — in Alexandria. A Virginia Department of Health update this morning (Friday) pushed that up to six.
“Four of those are in long-term living facilities,” Wilson said. “One is in an educational facility.”
There has been another death and there are now 547 positive or probable COVID-19 cases in Alexandria, an increase of 35 cases since yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.
There have been 15 fatalities in Alexandria, according to VDH. There have been nine male deaths and six female deaths, and there have been 258 males and 285 females with the virus.
