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Coronavirus: ‘This is not a drill,’ DeWine warns Ohioans in stern message

Gov. Mike DeWine issued a stern warning to Ohioans as he addressed the state on the current state of the pandemic, the recent increases in cases and the spread of the virus.

The following was discussed during DeWine’s address from the Governor’s Office:

  • Ohioans need to take immediate action to slow the spread of coronavirus, he said, or risk falling into the same category with Florida, Arizona, California and Texas in a matter of weeks.
  • DeWine said he will take whatever action he needs to protect citizens in the state, but would not be discussing any new health orders. “That discussion is for another time,” he said. “But orders are not as important as what we all do in the days ahead. The future is in our own hands.”
  • The governor praised Ohioans’ efforts at the beginning of the pandemic to bide Ohio’s medical providers and manufacturers time to produce the equipment needed to be prepared for a rise in cases.
  • Ohio is seeing its hospitalizations approaching the same numbers the state saw at the pandemic’s peak in April and May. The Dayton region however, is seeing the highest number of hospitalizations since the coronavirus arrived in the state, DeWine said.
  • DeWine said testing in the state has gone up 87 percent, but the number of positive cases has grown by almost 200 percent. “Clearly, our number of new cases is not just the result of increased testing,” he said.
  • DeWine discussed a quote from an article written yesterday by John Berry, who wrote “The Great Influenza about the Spanish Flu Pandemic of 1918,” that paints a grim picture if Ohioans don’t slow the spread. The quote read: “This is our second chance. We won’t get a third. If we don’t get the growth of this pandemic under control now, in a few months, when the weather turns cold and forces people to spend more time indoors, we could face a disaster that dwarfs the situation today.”
  • DeWine called the coming weeks a “defining time” for Ohioans and their efforts to slow the spread of the virus. “This is not a drill,” he said. “It’s the real thing.”
  • The governor issued a plea to Ohioans to wear a face mask. “I am asking you, wherever you live, to wear a mask when in public. Some may question the wisdom of masks, but as we said when I was a prosecutor: ‘The jury is back. The verdict is in.' There is broad consensus in medical, health, and business communities that masks are critical,” DeWine said. Within a couple of weeks of people consistently wearing masks, areas saw a slowdown of the spread of the virus, he said of data from health experts.
  • DeWine admits he, like many, have let their guard down when it comes to the virus. “We’re tired. We want to go back to the way things were – and that’s very understandable. But when our guard is down, we’re playing Russian Roulette with our lives,” he said.

Things you need to know Wednesday:

  • The head of the state’s largest teacher’s union says educators want to go back to the classroom but they are nervous about the potential spread of the virus
  • I-Team Investigation: School districts wrestle with policy on having students wear masks
  • Today in Springfield, there is a COVID-19 pop-up testing site being offered. The third community testing clinic will be July 22 at La Condesa Grocery #1, 440 S. Burnett Road (Burnett Plaza Shopping Center). The clinics are courtesy of The Clark County Combined Health District and the city of Springfield. They operate noon until 6 p.m. and the tests are free. No insurance, doctor’s order or appointment needed.
  • There are COVID-19 pop-up testing sites offered this week in Montgomery County
  • Now through today, the Ohio Department of Health will allow contact and non-contact competition to resume for all sports if teams agree to all of the guidelines in the order. Guidelines include tests for all players, coaches, athletic trainers, support staff and officials before travel and competition; daily symptom assessments; face coverings for trainers while attending to a player; Coaches and officials should wear a face covering when possible; strict social distancing by players not engaged in practice or competition, and immediate isolation and medical care for a participant.
  • The city of Dayton today will resume water service cut-offs for delinquent accounts.
  • Travelers from Ohio, Minnesota, Wisconsin and New Mexico have been added to the list of the 22 states required to quarantine for 14 days upon entering New York.
  • The State Controlling Board has OK’d coronavirus relief aid to support local schools preparing for the start of the school year.

LATEST STATE DATA: As of Wednesday afternoon, there have been at least 69,311 confirmed or probable cases in the state, 3,075 deaths, and 9,209 hospitalizations, according to the Ohio Department of Health. 47,303 people are presumed to have recovered from the virus in the state.

Ohio has an estimated population of approximately 11.7 million, census records show.

Of the state’s positive cases, 7.3% are from Ohio’s prisons.

Of the state’s positive cases, 16.1% are from long-term care facilities (nursing homes, assisted living)

[ Local cases, deaths reported to Ohio Department of Health ]

The state reported that a total of 1,058,599 people have been tested in Ohio, which is about 9 percent of the population.

In the state, 8,472 cases are health care workers, which is 12 percent of the cases.

[ Local cases, deaths reported to Ohio Department of Health ]

Other things you should know today, Wednesday:

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