Miramar, FL (Saturday, March 14, 2020)– City of Miramar Mayor Wayne M. Messam and City Manager, Vernon E. Hargray signed an executive order to declare a state of emergency in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Mayor Messam stressed that it is extremely important that residents and businesses in the City of Miramar know that the City is taking every precautionary measure to ensure their safety and welfare.
“Our top priority is protecting the health, safety and welfare of our residents and businesses,” Mayor Messam emphasized.
The Mayor issued a call to action for every member of the city, all residents, city employees and businesses to take immediate steps to help stop the spread of this deadly virus. He urged the community to follow the advice of the Florida Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Taking guidelines from the Florida Department of Health and CDC, the City has taken the following actions to limit the spread of the Coronavirus:
SENIORS CITIZENS:
- South central/Southeast Focal Point Senior Centers will be closed effective Monday, March 16, 2020.
- Meals on Wheels South Florida is providing emergency meals (breakfast, dinner and snacks) for enrolled senior clients.
- Senior transportation will continue prescription pick-up/delivery and medical appointments (seniors have been instructed to confirm appointments with their healthcare providers).
- Community Services support to the community will continue normal operations. Clients will receive services onsite and/or remotely when warranted.
- Outreach for disaffected senior center members will be delivered utilizing a tiered approach (isolation, co-morbidity and food insecurity) consisting of home visits and/or telephonic support.
- Seniors are asked to call 954-889-2719 for additional information.
ADULT DAY CARE CENTER: will remain open during normal operating hours and will follow the Florida Department of Health guidelines around social distancing. The facility will not be accepting any visitors except for staff and clients. Drop-off and pickup are being conducted curbside.
CHILDCARE WILL REMAIN OPEN:
The closing of all county schools will affect families with children in the home. The City’s childcare facility will remain open. However, parents and caregivers will be required to do curbside drop-off and pick up.
BUSINESSES:
- The City is asking all businesses to provide notification if an employee has been tested positive for the coronavirus.
- A dedicated email was sent last week to businesses providing CDC useful tips and best practices to keep employees safe.
- The City’s Economic Development department will provide flyers for small businesses with recommended tips to keep their company virus-free.
CITY FACILITIES:
- Installation of 15 touch-free sanitizing dispensers installed at various locations.
- Replacement of manual faucets and soap dispensers in restrooms.
- Increased wiping and disinfecting services from once/day to twice/day for all high traffic facilities.
- Appointed point persons at facilities to ensure cleaning and sanitizing of high touch areas with a Check Sheet to document each day’s cleaning and sanitizing activities.
- Provided two supplemental wipes/day so that facilities will be wiped four times daily in high public pedestrian traffic areas.
- Coronavirus tips flyers installed at front doors, lobbies and in bathrooms.
- Individual bottles of hand sanitizer given to field operations staff.
- Establish visitors’ sign-in sheets at City Hall and the Development buildings.
OTHER FACILITIES/ACTIVITIES:
- All rentals in City facilities will be cancelled or postponed. Patrons will be fully refunded for rental fees for all cancelled events.
- Activities at City parks will be cancelled until further notice.
- The Fire Department will be in contact with the State Department of Emergency Management to discuss the possibility for reimbursement and to determine any compliance requirements for the City.
- The Fire Department has been tasked with the purchase of all applicable tools and equipment for City use for the duration of the emergency event.
- All City organized sports activities suspended until further notice.
- Spring Camp is still on, but field trips are cancelled.
- Parks will remain open.
- Pools will remain open.
- Fitness centers closed.
- PAL and Optimist cancelled all activities.
- Miramar Cultural Center will be closed, and all events postponed. The Cultural Center box office will operate on reduced hours, Tuesdays to Fridays from 12pm-3pm through the end of April.
CITY OF MIRAMAR EVENTS POSTPONED until further notice:
- Mayor Wayne Messam’ s Let’s Talk Public Safety meeting 3/16
- Commissioner Yvette Coulbourne’s Census 2020 Business Lunch and Community Meeting 3/19
- Miramar Family Night 3/20
- Paw Central Grand Opening 3/21
- Women in Fire-Rescue 2020 Summit 3/28
- Always Remember at the Miramar Cultural Center 03/26 -03/29
- MCC Presents: Baila Puerto Rico at the Miramar Cultural Center 04/04
- MCC Presents: Monty Alexander 04/18
Last week, the City implemented the following actions at facilities to help stop the spread of the virus:
- HYGIENE TIPS: Issued in 3 languages on all facilities doors, bathrooms, outdoor signage A-Frames, sent via emails, posted on social media, on Miramar TV Chanel 78 Comcast and website.
- CHILDCARE – All toys, games and other hand-held devices are cleaned daily to ensure student safety. All parents/caregivers must use hand sanitizers, located in the childcare facilities, prior to entering to pick up participants.
- SENIOR SERVICES AND ADULT DAY CARE – Training was provided to senior center and adult daycare participants by Miramar Public Safety personnel on handwashing, hygiene and overall safety practices. Additional information was distributed to caregivers of the Adult Day Care participants on proper handwashing and hygiene procedures. Laminated signs are posted throughout the facilities to remind participants of the procedures presented to them.
- WALL-MOUNTED HAND SANITIZERS: exist throughout the buildings that house senior services and Adult Day Care however, since the awareness of the virus, additional stations have been set up to facilitate more frequent use.
- BUSES: City staff wipes down bus seats, door handles and rails at the end of each route for community buses. Senior center and Adult Day Care buses cleaned and disinfected after each trip.
The City of Miramar will continue to closely monitor the latest regarding the recent outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19). There is a lot of information being shared and not all of it is accurate. We encourage you to rely on the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Florida Department of Health for information on ways that can help prevent the spread of this disease. Please keep checking the latest updates on our website at: https://miramarfl.gov/1695/Coronavirus-Update. Or call 954-602-HELP.
The Florida Department of Health has established a 24-hour coronavirus hotline 866-779-6121 or via email at COVID-19@flhealth.gov.
- CDC General Information: www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
- CDC Prevention and Treatment: www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/prevention-treatment.html
- CDC Frequently Asked Questions: www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/faq.html
- The Florida Department of Health: http://www.floridahealth.gov/diseases-and-conditions/COVID-19/
- Updates from the World Health Organization: www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
- To view live updates on cases worldwide, please visit Johns Hopkins CSSE: systems.jhu.edu