COLUMBUS, Ohio _ With the closure of schools and banning of 100-person gatherings, Ohio is slowly grinding to a halt as the coronavirus spreads throughout the state.
Gov. Mike DeWine announced he would close all schools at the end of the day Monday until April 3, an action DeWine said he did not take lightly. The closures do not include child care facilities.
"We thought long and hard about that and we understand the sacrifice this is going to entail but this is the best medical advice we can get from people who study viruses," DeWine said.
Ohio Department of Health Director Amy Acton signed an order Thursday banning gatherings of more than 100 people, the governor said. The ban does not include grocery stores, forms of transit, athletics events that exclude spectators, weddings, funerals or religious gatherings, DeWine said.
DeWine on Tuesday asked for event organizers and sporting events to limit spectators. Since then the NBA, NHL and MLS have postponed their seasons.
DeWine said that in the next few days the state will issue regulations to stop all visitation at nursing homes and state psychiatric hospitals. People who work at nursing homes and psychiatric hospitals will have their temperatures tested.
DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted are also sending a letter to President Donald Trump, asking him to allow for the state to temporarily stop required inspections of long-term care facilities and others while the virus spreads.
"This will not last forever. This is temporary. Everything we're doing is temporary," DeWine said. "We will get back to normal in Ohio."
A fifth Ohioan tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday. He is a 55-year-old man from Trumbull County has tested positive for the disease. The man has been hospitalized in an intensive care unit and did not go to work after developing the symptoms, DeWine said.
Today's number of cases, five, is expected to double within six days, DeWine said.
"These numbers are just going to continue to grow and we know that these confirmed numbers are just a small fraction of the individuals who are infected already in the state of Ohio," DeWine said.
The state received two additional testing kits for the virus, bringing its capacity to test up to 1,200 people, Acton said.
There are 52 Ohioans awaiting test results for the coronavirus. There are 30 Ohioans who have tested negative for COVID-19 so far, according to the state health department's website.
The latest confirmed cases of the virus represent "community spread," officials said. That means a person who had not been traveling abroad was infected by someone else within the U.S.
"This is a ripple effect I'm seeing spread throughout Ohio. It is in counties far and wide," Acton said. "We most definitely do have community spread."
Acton said that Ohioans will have to get used to living in an environment they've never experienced before. Acton said the COVID-19 outbreak is expected to peak by late April or mid-May.
Until then, Acton said that Ohioans will have a few tough months ahead of them.
"Every action every one of us takes is going to save lives," Acton said.
The state is seeking additional poll workers for Ohio's primary Election Day next week. There are some workers who will not be able to participate because of their health risks for the coronavirus, Husted said.
So far more than 500 additional people have volunteered to help out.
The state needs to set an example for others about how to move forward, DeWine said. For that reason, DeWine has asked for state employees who can to work from home.
Many Ohio schools _ including Columbus City Schools, the state's largest district, with about 50,000 students _ have canceled or postponed large school-sponsored events, such as plays, concerts, competitions, field trips, travel to conferences and PTA meetings.
Other preparations include districts planning for online learning from home.
Bexley and Reynoldsburg, for example, canceled classes Friday so educators could prepare for a potential closure and maintenance staff could clean the buildings. Spring break starts Saturday in Bexley.
In some districts, students are required to take their books and belongings home now, in case they can't return.
Hilliard City Schools sent iPads home with all students in grades K-4 on Thursday, said Stacie Raterman, spokeswoman for Hilliard schools. While students in grade 5-12 all take devices home regularly, such as laptops, typically the younger students keep their devices in classrooms.
"If it comes to that, we'll be ready," Raterman said.
But some district officials have expressed concerns regarding student access to both the internet and food. Elsewhere in the country, closed schools have resorted to providing kids free meals via pickup or delivery.
All Columbus students, for example, receive free breakfast and lunch.
In the South-Western school district, with about 23,000 students, many families also lack reliable internet access, which would make digital instruction a serious obstacle, regardless of how much educators prepare, spokeswoman Sandy Nekoloff said.
"We always have the option of treating a closure of this type as 'calamity' or 'snow' days and extending the school year as needed," Nekoloff said.
"There's going to be a significant amount of disruption over the next several months to our daily lives," Mayor Andrew J. Ginther said on Thursday.
Ginther said the city may lose tax revenue as businesses as the general economy slows down. The city may also have to tap into its rainy day fund at some point, he said.
People need to acknowledge that "disruption is the new normal for the next several months. We have to accept that, but we've got to keep engaging in our daily lives" while being smart about taking steps to protect yourself.
Ginther said that he is in constant contact with state leaders, and talked to the governor Wednesday night about orders he planned to issue Thursday.
Columbus officials said that given the governor's new directive, they are evaluating city programs and events to determine how they might be affected, said Robin Davis, Ginther's director of media relations.
The Shamrock Club of Columbus, which hosts annual activities on St. Patrick's Day, has canceled the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Downtown Columbus and the Irish Family Reunion previously scheduled for Tuesday at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.
The St. Patrick's Day parade set for Saturday in Dublin also is canceled, and the grand opening of the new Dublin Link Bridge, scheduled to open Friday, is postponed.
