Month: April 2020

Cobb Coronavirus deaths reach 17; average age is 72.3 years

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Cobb Commissioners Coronavirus meeting

The Georgia Department of Public Health is gradually revealing more details about those who contract and die from Coronavirus.

As of noon Thursday, the number of people in the state who’ve died from COVID-19 was 163, with 5,348 confirmed cases. The number of hospitalizations is 1,056, a rate of nearly 20 percent.

Cobb County remains among the hotspots in Georgia, with 320 cases and 17 deaths, along with Fulton, DeKalb and Dougherty.

The DPH daily status report can be found here; it is updated at noon and 7 p.m.

A new statistical line being provided now is a breakdown of those who’ve died from the virus. The report indicates the age and sex of each person, and whether they have any underlying medical issues.

For the 17 Cobb victims, the average age is 72.3 years, and 13 of the deceased are males. The oldest was a 92-year-old woman, and the youngest was a 33-year-old man. The report states it’s unknown whether they had other medical issues.

Five are in their 80s, three are in their 70s, three are in their 60s and one is in his 50s. The age of one of the Cobb victims is unknown.

Cobb COVID 3.30.20 heat map
Cobb COVID cases mapped out by Cobb & Douglas Public Health on March 30.

Various states have been providing different information to the public; in Georgia, the exact locations of victims below the county level generally haven’t been released.

But during a special meeting of the Cobb Board of Commissioners Wednesday, Dr. Janet Memark, director of Cobb and Douglas Public Health, showed heat maps of the increase in COVID-19 cases over the month of March.

She said the heat maps are not exact, but the cases are spread out fairly evenly through the county.

Among the positive cases is a resident at the Sterling Estates senior community in East Cobb, which has been placed on lockdown.

Memark and deputy director Lisa Crossman stressed to commissioners that what they’re seeing is what’s occurring all over the country—widespread community transmission.

They’re asking for non-essential “personal touch” businesses to be closed, and for parks and pools to remain closed.

Cobb Commission Chairman Mike Boyce is expected to tighten the restrictions of a county emergency declaration he issued last week.

That may be superseded, however, by what happens statewide.

Later Wednesday, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp is expected to announce details of a shelter-in-place order that takes effect Friday through April 13. Schools also have been closed for the rest of the academic year; the Cobb County School District is expected to provide further academic guidance on Thursday.

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East Cobb Quilters’ Guild donates placemats for Meals on Wheels

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East Cobb Quilters' Guild
Pictured from left to right: Pat Smith, East Cobb Quilters’ Guild Community Service Committee, Kristie Naylor, Volunteer Services Coordinator, Cobb County Senior Services, and Lynda Bussolar, East Cobb Quilters’ Guild Community Service Committee member .

Submitted information and photo:

East Cobb Quilters’ Guild has a long history of community service. Members give freely of their time and energy to create great quilts and other items for donation to area charities, including Meals on Wheels. This past year, the East Cobb Quilters’ Guild donated 597 placemats to Meals on Wheels.

March for Meals on Wheels is a nationwide month-long celebration of Meals on Wheels and the millions of seniors who rely on the nutritious meals, friendly visits and safety checks to remain independent at home.

Hundreds of older adults and disabled individuals are served by the Cobb County Meals on Wheels Program staffed by volunteer drivers. Lunch is a lot more fun with a pretty placemat, especially with all of the beautiful designs.  

An additional note: The group delivered 76 placemats in January, 32 in February and 108 total thus far in 2020.

More on the East Cobb Quilters’ Guild can be found here.

Send us your news!

Let us know what you, your neighbors or others you know are doing to help one another and those in need in East Cobb.

Just e-mail us: editor@eastcobbnews.com with text, photos and other relevant information, and we’ll share it with the community.

 

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Georgia schools closed for the school year; shelter-in-place ordered

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Gov. Brian Kemp, Georgia Coronavirus emergency

Gov. Brian Kemp announced Wednesday that public K-12 schools in the state of Georgia will be closed for in-person instruction for the rest of the 2019-20 school year.

He also said he would issue a statewide shelter-in-place order, effective Friday through April 13, to combat the spread of COVID-19.

UPDATED, Thursday, April 2: The details of the statewide shelter-in-place order can be found here, along with the extension of a state of emergency in Cobb County to April 24.

Shortly after Wednesday’s announcement, the Cobb County School District put out a notice that it would provide further academic guidance by the end of the day Thursday.

Cobb schools closed March 13, shortly before Kemp ordered a statewide closure at least through April 24.

The shelter-in-place order will formally be issued on Thursday, including more details about what those restrictions may entail.

Georgia is one of the few states that has not issued such an order. Other nearby states in the Southeast, including Florida, are starting to do so.

Earlier Wednesday, the Cobb Board of Commissioners heard recommendations by the top two officials of Cobb and Douglas Public Health to continue an emergency declaration until April 24 (it’s set to expire April 15) and to close “personal touch” businesses, like hair salons, barber shops and and personal care salons.

The emergency declaration limits the hours of non-essential businesses. Cobb and Douglas Public Health leaders also urged Cobb to keep parks and pools closed for now.

The number of Georgia’s confirmed COVID-19 cases have risen dramatically over the last week, to 4,638 as of noon Wednesday, with 139 deaths. Cobb is reporting 293 cases and 15 deaths, the fourth-highest total in Georgia.

Earlier this week, Kemp activated the Georgia National Guard to nursing homes, senior-living facilities and long-term care homes where COVID-cases have been confirmed.

On Monday the Sterling Estates senior community in East Cobb announced one of its residents had tested positive, and that all residents there are on lockdown.

During his press conference Wednesday, Kemp said state tracking models showed major increases in the rate of community transmission.

The same trends trends were occurring in Cobb, said Dr. Janet Memark of Cobb and Douglas Public Health, at Wednesday’s commissioners’ meeting.

The governor has been reluctant to order all but essential businesses across the state, since some areas of Georgia don’t have that many cases of the virus.

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East Cobb Open for Business: Cazadores and Mezza Luna reopen

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East Cobb Open for Business

Updating our East Cobb Open for Business Directory:

Both Cazadores Mexican Restaurant (Johnson Ferry Road location only) and Mezza Luna Pasta and Seafood have reopened for takeout, curbside pickup and delivery.

Cazadores is open at 3165 Johnson Ferry Road from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., phone 770-641-8625. The Sandy Plains Road location is remaining closed for now.

Mezza Luna Pasta & Seafood (2100 Roswell Road) began takeout, curbside and delivery service Tuesday with a limited menu. Hours are Starting March 31, curbside pickup, takeout and delivery from a limited menu Monday-Saturday 5-10 p.m. and Sunday 12-9 p.m., call 678-214-5856;

On Friday, Marietta Coffee Company (1598 Roswell Road), will start walk-up and takeout orders daily from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., call 678-765-8885.

Williamson Bros. Bar-B-Q was among the restaurants that has closed and was planning to reopen Tuesday, but is saying now that a mid-April “grand reopening” is being planned.

Send Us Your News!

If your business closed and is reopening, please e-mail us: editor@eastcobbnews.com and we will place it in our East Cobb Open for Business Directory. We want to help local businesses get back on their feet with this free listing!

Contact us at the same e-mail address for news about efforts to assist those in need, health care workers, first responders and others on the frontlines of combatting Coronavirus in East Cobb.

Tuesday’s post about local businesses and people volunteering their time and resources to feed health care workers is a good example of what we’re trying to highlight.

Thank you for your patience and for keeping us updated on your business.

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East Cobb calendar update: April event cancellations continue

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A few April events we’d normally promote on our Events Calendar are being called off, and we expect more to come in.Walton Chorus

Among them is the Walton Chorus Spring Concert scheduled for April 21. All public schools in Georgia are closed at least through April 24.

According to the Walton Chorus Facebook page:

“We are hopeful that we will still sing these pieces and perhaps make in-class videos of these great arrangements to share once we return to school. Our student officers did a terrific job of coming up with this year’s theme and with song ideas. Hopefully, we will still be able to make this concert a reality, but perhaps in a different format.”

The organizers of the Pope Band Recycling Event slated for April 25 sent us word that that event too, is being cancelled.

We’re going to temporarily suspend updating our Events Calendar for the time being, until public outings are allowed to resume.

But, we do want to know if you have cancellations/postponements/reschedulings of events, so we can share them with the community.

Please e-mail: calendar@eastcobbnews.com and we will post those changes in our news blog as part of our continuing coverage of our community’s response to the Coronavirus crisis.

If your business closed and is reopening, please e-mail us: editor@eastcobbnews.com and we will place it in our East Cobb Open for Business Directory (see the link below). We want to help local businesses get back on their feet with this free listing!

Contact us at the same e-mail address for news about efforts to assist those in need, health care workers, first responders and others on the frontlines of combatting Coronavirus in East Cobb.

Tuesday’s post about local businesses and people volunteering their time and resources to feed health care workers is a good example of what we’re trying to highlight.

Thank you for your patience and for keeping us updated on your group or organization’s activities.

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Get Our Free E-Mail Newsletter!

Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!

East Cobb YMCA offering childcare for COVID frontline workers

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Submitted information:East Cobb YMCA

The YMCA of Metro Atlanta announced 13 of its locations across metro Atlanta stand ready to provide high-quality childcare services for first responders, hospital employees, police department staff and other frontline workers.

“Our childcare program is open to the brave individuals who are working to meet the needs of the community, including medical professionals, law enforcement, grocery workers, and others who cannot work from home at this time,” said Lauren Koontz, YMCA of Metro Atlanta president and CEO. “In many ways this is our moment to truly deliver on our promise of service to those who turn to us for community and to those who turn to us for survival.”

Childcare is available Monday through Friday from 5:30 am to 8 pm. at the below locations. Limited space is available. Those interested in enrolling their child can visit spiritonline.ymcaatlanta.org to login or register. Once a location has reached capacity, the registration system will indicate that it is full.

McCLESKEY-EAST COBB FAMILY YMCA

Ages 5–12 

1055 East Piedmont Rd, Marietta, GA 30062

Parents are encouraged to drop off their child between 5:30 a.m. and 9 a.m. and pick them up between 5pm and 8 pm. No children will be allowed to be dropped off or picked up between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., except in the case of an emergency. Safety protocols set forth by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will be closely followed, and children and the person who drops them off daily will have their temperature checked upon arrival. Children with a temperature of 100 degrees Fahrenheit or higher will not be allowed to stay.

Children are asked to bring a water bottle and their own peanut-free breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Children are also encouraged to bring books and homework to complete during the day. For more information, visit www.ymcaatlanta.org/firstresponders.

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