Officials: FL Coronavirus Patient Attended EMS Conference

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A 70-year-old Broward County man who attended a conference for first-responders in Tampa last week is among the three new coronavirus cases discovered in Florida.

Another new patient attended Daytona Bike Week last week.

• RELATED: Miami Firefighter Hospitalized, Tested for Coronavirus

The Florida Department of Health announced the latest cases on Wednesday night, soon after President Donald Trump declared the suspension of travel from Europe for 30 days to try to halt the spread of the virus.

The latest cases brings the total number of people who have tested positive for the virus in the state to 26.

The Broward patient attended EMS Today, a conference and networking event for firefighters, paramedics, fire chiefs, emergency management officials and medical personnel that was held March 2-6 at the Tampa Convention Center.

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The event’s website said that attendees could network with more than 4,600 emergency medical services professionals and more than 200 firms from across the world who gathered for the Tampa event.

The other two new patients are:

• A 63-year old New York man who attended last week’s start of Daytona Bike Week, which runs from March 6 through Sunday and which organizers say attracts about 500,000 bikers total over the two-week event. The New York Department of Health is overseeing that case.
• A 56-year old man from Miami-Dade County who is the first person to test positive there.

House Speaker José Oliva, R-Miami Lakes told the Times/Herald that Miami-Dade’s first positive case was “to be expected.”

“Miami is the gateway to the Americas,” he said. “People fly in and out of Miami every day. It’s one of the busiest airports of the country.”

CORONAVIRUS RESOURCES:

• International Association of Fire Fighters Tool Kit
• International Association of Fire Chiefs Resource Page
• EPA List of Disinfectants to Use Against COVID-19

The state health department recommends anyone who experiences symptoms after attending EMS Today or Daytona Bike Week should immediately contact their local health officials or doctors and self-isolate for 14 days.

The state has classified both the St. Johns and Miami-Dade cases as “travel-related." Helen Aguirre Ferr\u00e9, a spokeswoman for Gov. Ron DeSantis, said Wednesday the state considers cases to be travel-related when a patient has either gone out of state or been in contact with someone who has left the state and has the virus.

All three men will remain in isolation until they are cleared by public health officials. Epidemiologists are investigating these new cases.

Coronavirus produces symptoms similar to the flu and can cause severe respiratory infections, particularly in people who are older or have chronic health conditions.

The number of cases found in Florida has changed nearly every day since the outbreak was first discovered last week. So far there have been two deaths: A man from Santa Rosa County and a woman from Lee County, both in their 70s and that the state has deemed “travel related.”

Florida had 147 coronavirus tests pending Tuesday night, according to health officials, and 301 people here have tested negative to date.

The state was monitoring another 476 people for signs of the illness.

More than 126,135 cases have been reported worldwide. Nearly 4,630 people have died.

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©2020 the Tampa Bay Times (St. Petersburg, Fla.)

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