Canton adjusts to new normal amid COVID outbreak

The dramatic upheaval of day-to-day life in Canton continued unabated through the weekend and into this week — and will likely only intensify in the days and weeks ahead — as local leaders enact extraordinary measures and many residents hunker down at home in the wake of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Town offices are closed to the public indefinitely as of March 17. (Moira Sweetland photo)

First detected in December 2019 in Wuhan, China, the novel coronavirus — a new respiratory infection — has spread rapidly across the globe in a matter of months, killing more than 7,900 people worldwide (108 in the U.S.) while straining national healthcare systems, upending global markets, and leading to widespread closures and unprecedented restrictions.

Closer to home, the changes came in rapid succession, advancing from reminders about hand-washing and coughing etiquette to a quasi-shutdown across the commonwealth in a matter of days. The number of cases, meanwhile, have also begun to multiply, with Massachusetts reporting 218 confirmed COVID-19 cases as of St. Patrick’s Day — more than double the number from one week earlier and fifth most among the 50 states. (Norfolk County currently has 43 confirmed cases, although none of them were from Canton as of March 15, per the Board of Health.)

At the local level, attempts to mitigate the spread of the virus first began to intensify on Thursday, March 12, a day after the National Basketball Association (NBA) announced its first positive case and postponed its season — a watershed moment that touched off a rash of high-profile closures (from Broadway to Disney World to major retailers such as Apple).

Initial actions in Canton were comparatively modest — the senior center and library announced the postponement of March programs but otherwise planned to remain open (both have since announced closures); the Canton Public Schools announced an initial one-week closure (since expanded to three weeks); and a number of community events planned for March were put on hold.

Also on Thursday, Canton’s two state finalist hockey teams were awarded a title by default as the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) announced the cancelation of all state championship games.

By Friday, Governor Charlie Baker had announced a ban on gatherings of more than 250 people, and the Archdiocese of Boston suspended all Catholic masses, with many other organizations and local houses of worship following suit. Local youth sports leagues also announced cancelations and delays, with Canton Youth Hockey and Canton Youth Basketball having their playoffs cut short and Canton Youth Lacrosse and Canton Little League postponing the start of their seasons.

A mere 48 hours after instituting his ban on large gatherings, Governor Baker announced a far more stringent set of emergency actions on Sunday that included a mandatory three-week closure of all K-12 schools and a three-week, state-wide prohibition on dining in restaurants and bars (take-out and delivery are still permitted). Additionally, Baker reduced the limit on gatherings from 250 people to 25 people with the restriction applying to all community, civic, public, leisure, and faith-based events as well as sporting events, concerts, conventions, fundraisers, parades, fairs and festivals.

“Our administration is taking these rapid steps to protect the health and safety of our residents to mitigate the spread of COVID-19,” said Baker. “We know that a lot of the measures we are putting into place … will cause disruption in people’s day to day lives. With the steps we are taking today, we can ensure residents can still access key state services while taking necessary precautions to limit the spread of COVID-19.”

The restrictions currently in place will remain in effect until at least April 6. In the meantime, President Donald Trump unveiled a new set of federal guidelines on Monday urging Americans to avoid gatherings of more than 10 people for the next 15 days, while the U.S. Centers for Disease Control recommended that gatherings — excluding schools and businesses — be limited to 50 people over the next eight weeks.

Despite rumors to the contrary, Governor Baker has repeatedly stressed that he has no plans to ask residents to “shelter in place,” and President Trump has also dispelled similar rumors about a “national lockdown,” although he struck a more ambivalent tone on Tuesday, saying that such a measure has been discussed internally but remains unlikely.

Both the governor and the president have also repeatedly urged all residents to follow “social distancing” practices by avoiding crowds, canceling social gatherings, and maintaining a separation of at least six feet from others.

As for local measures, the town of Canton announced on Monday that all town offices would be closed to the public beginning March 17 until further notice. According to the town website, offices are operating on an “essential basis with minimum staff” and residents are urged to use online services, email and telephone for communication.

The Canton Public Library has also made the decision to close until at least April 6. In the meantime, the library has increased the amount of checkouts available on its digital platforms and has extended the due dates for all books through the end of April.

According to town leaders, all emergency actions taken to date have been strictly precautionary in nature and are consistent with the latest state and federal guidelines.

“I’m actually pretty impressed,” said Board of Health member Dr. Julie Goodman. “I feel like the town has been preparing for something like this for quite some time, and I think we’re in very good hands and we’re dealing with it as best as anyone could.”

While Canton’s public health director, John Ciccotelli, is currently out on leave, Goodman said the town has an exceptional point person handling the COVID-19 response in Public Health Nurse Cindy Bonner. “She’s been amazing,” Goodman said of Bonner. “She has been in close contact with the [state] Department of Public Health as well as working closely with the Fire and Police departments.”

On Monday, the BOH met briefly to appoint Barbara Reardon to serve as the temporary health director during Ciccotelli’s absence. The board will also look to recruit an interim health director so that Reardon can resume her full-time role as the town engineer.

Goodman said that Reardon will manage the board’s day to day functions and will help to ensure the department is “covered in all areas,” although she stressed that the town is “well staffed” with respect to the coronavirus response. This includes an emergency preparedness team spearheaded by Fire Chief Charles Doody as well as a dedicated COVID-19 task force, which has been communicating and meeting regularly to monitor the spread of the virus.

For the latest town-specific information about COVID-19, visit the town’s Coronavirus Information page.

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Posted by Jay Turner on Mar 20 2020. Filed under News, Town Government. Both comments and pings are currently closed.