FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 9, 2020
Contact: Olivia LaVecchia
(802) 734-0617
Mayor Weinberger Updates His Call for Vigilance in Response to Rising Case Growth in Chittenden County
Burlington, VT – As Covid-19 cases remain high in Burlington and Chittenden County, Mayor Miro Weinberger today extended his call for Burlingtonians to exercise extra caution and shared key updates.
“Since Friday we have seen even more indications of elevated virus risk right now in Burlington and throughout much of Vermont,” said Mayor Miro Weinberger. “Now is a time to avoid high-risk activities, and to follow the Department of Health’s new guidance on social gatherings and testing. As in earlier stages of this pandemic, we can keep the spread of the virus in check if we work together and exercise vigilance.”
Mayor Weinberger also shared the following key updates:
- Limit gatherings: The Vermont Department of Health continues to strongly encourage all Vermonters to limit gatherings to 10 or fewer people and with a very limited number of trusted households, and avoid unnecessary travel.
- New guidance: On Sunday evening, the Vermont Department of Health also issued new guidance that all Burlingtonians should be aware of, including: “If you have attended an event with people who are not in your usual social circle, please avoid close contact with others and consider obtaining a test now as well as 7 days after the event or gathering.”
- Increased risk in New North End: The City’s wastewater monitoring program is now detecting an increase of prevalence of Covid-19 in the New North End. This is an early sign of elevated risk, and if we act together now we can limit the spread of the virus. Our community is small and interconnected, which means that the entire City should be aware of this elevated risk. At the same time, the City is urging all New North End residents in particular to limit gathering sizes, contact your primary care provider if you have symptoms, and seek testing if you have returned from travel or seen people outside your normal social circle since the days around Halloween. The City is installing two variable message signs on North Avenue to further amplify the need for caution.
- Testing: The City is working closely with the Vermont Department of Health to evaluate potential new pop-up testing sites in the coming days. Look out for additional information as it becomes available. For now, Burlingtonians can see options for testing at: healthvermont.gov/covid-19/testing. Burlingtonians also are urged to call your health care provider if at any point you develop any symptoms.
Burlingtonians are invited to discuss this next stage of our response to the pandemic in a Telephone Town Hall meeting on Tuesday at 5:30 pm. Mayor Weinberger, Vermont Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Mark Levine, and UVM Medical Center President and COO Dr. Stephen Leffler will discuss how to assess risk, what Burlingtonians should keep in mind as they’re making holiday plans, and other key topics, and also take as many questions as they can from callers. Find the full details and RSVP on the event page.
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