Joe Thallemer, US 30 Coalition board member and former mayor of Warsaw, speaks about addressing the challenges along US 30 in the first of a ProPEL U.S. 30 stakeholder video series. Video provided.
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David Slone-dslone@timesuniononline.com
Joe Thallemer, US 30 Coalition board member and former mayor of Warsaw, speaks about addressing the challenges along US 30 in the first of a ProPEL U.S. 30 stakeholder video series. Video provided.Warsaw Mayor Joe Thallemer announced late Tuesday morning that he tested positive for COVID-19.
According to a news release from his office, “Having regularly monitored his temperature, he immediately sought testing when he first noticed a slight fever. He has been working from home since last Wednesday.”
“I am relieved that I feel good and am able to continue to work remotely,” he said.
State guidelines require isolation for 10 days after the onset of symptoms.
Testing is critically important to limiting community spread by quarantining those with confirmed positive results, the release states.
Thallemer “strongly recommends that anyone with any symptoms or who feels they have had close contact (within 6 feet for 10 minutes or more) with someone who has tested positive, should get tested immediately. With the increased availability of free, on-demand testing in our community, every resident, regardless of their ability to afford it or immigration status, now has access to testing,” the release states.
“I have worked very hard with the Kosciusko County Health Department to do whatever possible to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in our community. Adhering to the recommendations for wearing a mask at public gatherings, social distancing and frequent hand sanitization are critical protections that we all must continue to follow. While I can’t pinpoint how or when I was infected, I do know that diligently following the required precautions lessens the chance of the spread of the virus,” Thallemer said.
Asked if other city employees were impacted and tested positive for COVID-19, Thallemer responded via email, “Because of the social distancing, plexishields, masks, etc., I did not have any close contact with city employees during the two days I was at risk to spread. I will continue to remote access all meetings.”
He said he feels the precautions taken at City Hall have minimized the concerns of close contact.
Thallemer will attend today’s weekly press conference virtually.
No city services will be impacted negatively, Thallemer said.
Kosciusko County residents can get tested at the three MedStat sites in the county – Warsaw, Syracuse and Nappanee. Register online at medstatonline.com.
As of Monday, 501 people in Kosciusko County have been diagnosed with COVID-19 since March, with almost half of those recovering.
The Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) on Tuesday announced that 385 additional Hoosiers have been diagnosed with COVID-19 through testing at ISDH, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and private laboratories. That brings to 45,594 the total number of Indiana residents known to have the novel coronavirus following corrections to the previous day’s total.
Intensive care unit and ventilator capacity remains steady. As of today, more than 40% of ICU beds and 83% of ventilators are available, according to the daily ISDH news release.
A total of 2,448 Hoosiers are confirmed to have died from COVID-19, an increase of 16 over the previous day. Another 192 probable deaths have been reported based on clinical diagnoses in patients for whom no positive test is on record. Deaths are reported based on when data are received by ISDH and occurred over multiple days.
To date, 484,196 tests have been reported to ISDH, up from 476,519 on Monday.
To find testing locations around the state, visit www.coronavirus.in.gov and click on the COVID-19 testing information link.
