What to Know: Coronavirus Information and Prevention Tips
By Office of Communication
Posted on January 24, 2020, January 24, 2020

The City of Arlington wants its residents and visitors to know that the Fire Department’s Office of Emergency Management are communicating closely with Tarrant County Public Health, the Texas Department of State Health Services, the CDC, the Arlington medical community, and other partners to monitor and stay up-to-date on this evolving situation.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a health alert regarding an outbreak of a novel (new) Coronavirus in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, which began in December 2019. The CDC confirmed the first case in the United States on Jan. 21, 2020.

The City of Arlington wants its residents and visitors to know that the Fire Department’s Office of Emergency Management are communicating closely with Tarrant County Public Health, the Texas Department of State Health Services, the CDC, the Arlington medical community, and other partners to monitor and stay up-to-date on this evolving situation.

What to Know:

The Coronavirus causes a respiratory illness with fever and cough, may lead to severe pneumonia and is similar to the SARS and MERS Coronaviruses.

Coronaviruses are part of a large family of viruses, which can sometimes cause lower-respiratory tract illnesses, such as pneumonia or bronchitis.

Click here for more information about Coronavirus on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.

Symptoms are similar to the flu and include runny nose, headache, cough, sore throat, fever and a general feeling of being unwell. This is more common in people with cardiopulmonary disease, people with weakened immune systems. Symptoms may appear between 2-14 days of exposure. The virus is spread through respiratory droplets when someone with the virus coughs or sneezes.

Click here for the Tarrant County Public Health Coronavirus information site. Click here to visit the Texas Department of State Health Services Coronavirus information site.

There is no vaccine to prevent Coronavirus. The best prevention method is to avoid being exposed to the virus. General hygiene and habits to help prevent the virus are:

  • Washing your hands
  • Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands
  • Avoid contact with people who are sick
  • Stay home if you are sick
  • Cover your mouth when coughing or sneezing with a tissue, then throw the tissue away
  • Disinfect frequently touched objects

If you have been to China in the last 14 days and feel sick, you should:

  • Call your doctor’s office or emergency room prior to arriving to inform them of your symptoms and recent travels
  • Avoid contact with others
  • Not travel while sick
  • Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing
  • Wash your hands often with soap and water

The CDC is currently screening passengers at airports with direct or indirect traffic originating from Wuhan City.

Click the links below to read more information about stopping the spread of cold and flu.

Public Health, Coronavirus
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