Protective gear headed to Westmoreland as confirmed coronavirus cases grows to 4

Officials say Westmoreland County now has four confirmed coronavirus cases after two were added on Friday.

There is no other information available on any of the cases.

In the meantime, a shipment of personal protective equipment was expected to arrive Friday for Westmoreland County firefighters, police and ambulance personnel, said public safety director Roland “Bud” Mertz.

The Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, or PEMA, is sending the protective gear, including face masks, gowns and eye protection, amid the coronavirus pandemic, he said. The county has distributed about 2,800 masks to emergency responders who may come in contact with infected patients.

However, the shipment will not be enough for all of the county’s 118 fire departments, 33 police agencies and 28 EMS providers, he said.

“I know that they’re not fulfilling my order,” Mertz said.

The shipment comes as the country struggles to provide protective gear to medical workers and others. Millions of pieces of protective equipment in the National Strategic Stockpile is being rushed to states around the country, the Associated Press reported. Mertz said the Hospital Association of Pennsylvania was working with PEMA on behalf of medical workers.

County commissioners met Friday to formally approve an emergency declaration they issued last weekend in response to the pandemic. Chairs in the meeting room at the Greensburg courthouse were spaced six feet apart to observe social distancing. Commissioner Gina Cerilli called in to the meeting while Sean Kertes and Doug Chew attended in person.

The commissioners said they are finding out about the county’s confirmed coronavirus cases at the same time as the public. Two confirmed cases were reported Thursday by the state health department. Two more were added to the list on Friday.

“We’re still waiting to find out all the other information,” Kertes said. “We don’t know location (of the cases).”

Officials are trying to keep up with a constantly changing world — Gov. Tom Wolf, after ordering nonessential businesses to close early this week, on Thursday instructed “non-life-sustaining” businesses to close by 8 p.m. or face “enforcement actions.” Schools on Friday wrapped up their first week of a 10-day mandated shutdown.

But local officials have had no direct contact with Wolf’s office or the state Department of Health, they said.

“I just think they’re overwhelmed,” Cerilli said.

Chew said he doesn’t think any additional information about cases should be released by officials, citing privacy laws. He said community members could identify someone infected if they are provided general details, especially in small communities.

Mertz said his priority is planning for what is coming next.

“I have to really focus on what’s in my control and try to mitigate expectations of community spread and that type of stuff,” he said.

Mertz advised residents to stay home, wash their hands and continue mitigation efforts. That, he hopes, will reduce the effects on hospitals and EMS providers as cases grow.