The mayor of north suburban Mundelein announced Monday that he has tested positive for COVID-19, making him the first Chicago-area public official to disclose he has the disease.
Steve Lentz made the announcement during an online village board meeting.
“Normally I would never tell my constituents if I had a runny nose, a cold, the flu, or even a broken limb,” Lentz said. “But given the awful events surrounding the COVID-19 coronavirus, as an elected official I feel obligated to disclose that over the weekend I tested positive for this virus.”
He is quarantined at home with his wife, who was also diagnosed with COVID-19, he said.
Lentz said his symptoms are “mild.”
In his address, Lentz stressed the importance of social distancing, staying at least 6 feet from people and washing your hands often.
“My first symptom was a scratchy throat. It was so mild I would never have thought I had (COVID-19),” he said. “Without the call to social distancing, I think it highly likely that I would have gone about my routine as usual and spread the disease unknowingly.”
On Monday, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced that Illinois had 1,285 cases of COVID-19 in 31 counties. So far, 12 people in Illinois have died from the virus.
