In an effort to prepare for the possibility of even tighter restrictions in the City's response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Bartlesville Mayor Dale Copeland today extended a proclamation declaring a State of Emergency for the city.
The extension is in preparation of a City Council meeting on Monday, April 6, during which council members will be asked to consider implementing recommendations discussed by the Covid-19 Emergency Advisory Board created by the council last month. Recommendations are likely to include additional restrictions to those implemented by the council on March 23.
"My original proclamation of emergency was issued with the sincere hope that it would prove adequate for this crisis," Copeland said. "Reports in recent days have dashed that hope as we continue to see daily increases in the number of Covid-19 cases reported. With an abundance of caution and a desire to protect our community I am extending the proclamation to extend to May 4, 2020. It is my sincere prayer that our community may see the decline and end of this virulent infection during that time."
Covid-19 is a novel (new) coronavirus that is highly contagious and is responsible for 4,513 deaths in the U.S. and 34 in Oklahoma to date. As of today, 213,144 have tested positive for the virus in the U.S. alone, 879 of them in Oklahoma. There is no cure, treatment or vaccine for the virus. Officials have hoped to "flatten the curve," or lengthen the time span for the number of infected people requiring medical care in an effort to not overload the country's health care systems.
During an emergency meeting on March 23, the City Council approved the passage of City Ordinance No. 3525, which resulted in the closure of some businesses, limited restaurants to curb-side or delivery service, suspended several City functions such as Municipal Court and park shelter rentals, and closed most City-owned facilities to public access.
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt followed shortly with an executive order that further restricted businesses across the state and included a "Safer in Place" order for people over 65, those with compromised immune systems and those with underlying medical conditions that put them more at risk for critical illness, requiring them to remain at home except when obtaining food, medication, gasoline or medical care.
"Recent days have seen Covid-19 reports continue to increase and it is apparent that continued efforts to stem and slow this pandemic are required," Copeland said. "To wait is to risk greater loss and that is not an acceptable path. No mayor wishes to be compelled to issue a Proclamation of Emergency for the community. But critical circumstances require equal responses if we are to apply our best efforts of resistance in this battle. I ask everyone to join together in observing the guidelines of distancing and greatly reducing populations in gatherings, particularly large format stores. Together we can sacrifice for the short period of weeks to emerge with smaller losses for our future."
The City Council meeting will be held via videoconference, in accordance with Senate Bill 661, beginning at 7 p.m. on Monday. Citizens can view the meeting live on the City's webcast,
www.cityofbartlesville.org,
or on local cable television's Channel 56. Anyone who would like to provide questions or comments to the council prior to the meeting may do so by emailing [email protected].
