Westmoreland County Commissioner Sean Kertes, Clerk of Courts Bryan Kline test positive for coronavirus

Two Westmoreland County elected officials said Tuesday they tested positive for coronavirus.

Sean Kertes, chairman of the county commissioners, and Clerk of Courts Bryan Kline both said they are experiencing symptoms of the virus and both are at their respective homes in isolation.

“I had a 100-, 101-degree temperature and, by late Sunday, my symptoms progressed. I started to develop a cough, a fever, sweating and chills. Things started getting worse, and I got tested Monday morning,” Kertes said.

Kertes, 33, a first-term Republican, is the second county commissioner to contract the virus this fall. Republican Doug Chew tested positive in October.

According to a statement from county Solicitor Melissa Guiddy, Kertes notified officials of his diagnosis Tuesday morning.

“Chairman Kertes is currently following isolation recommendations and his staff is quarantined,” the release stated. “Westmoreland County Human Resources department has conducted contact tracing. The county has already implemented enhanced cleaning and disinfecting of the commissioners’ suite and continues to take precautions, including masking and temperature taking at the courthouse.”

Kertes attended a public commissioners meeting at the Greensburg courthouse on Dec. 3 and was back at the courthouse a day later. He was at home on Monday.

None of the three county commissioners was at the courthouse on Tuesday. They, along with Treasurer Jared Squires, participated by phone in a public meeting of the county’s retirement board. Controller Jeffrey Balzer attended the meeting in person.

Kertes quarantined for a week in October after Chew contracted the virus. Kertes also was home for about two weeks in November after his chief of staff reported coronavirus symptoms and awaited test results that ultimately determined he was not infected. Kertes returned to work at the courthouse on Nov. 30.

He said Tuesday it was likely he contracted the virus at the courthouse, which has seen an outbreak of cases over the last month.

Kline, the county’s three-term Republican clerk of courts, said he was diagnosed late last week with the virus and has experienced significant symptoms, including a temperature that reached 104 degrees.

“It’s been rough,” Kline said. “I was notified late Friday that my wife and I were exposed during a follow-up (doctor’s) appointment on Nov. 25 for my ankle reconstruction surgery.”

Kline said his wife and 8-year-old son also tested positive. His wife has had some minor symptoms and his son was sick for about a day but has since mostly recovered, he said.

“It’s something to be taken seriously,” Kline said of the virus.

A number of staffers in his courthouse office also contracted coronavirus in recent weeks, but none had been exposed to Kline.

He has been off work for eight weeks following his ankle surgery. Before his diagnosis, he was scheduled to return to work Dec. 7.