The White County Board of Commissioner's met Thursday, March 26th, 2020 to discuss the county's response to
COVID-19. The board voted to declare a state of emergency in White County and establish protective ordinance to control the spread of
COVID-19. Details about the ordinance and the impact on White County citizens can be found below....
White County is implementing its emergency response
plans and working diligently to ensure the health and safety of
county employees who deliver services to our citizens. The county has
closed those functions that encourage social gathering
such as the Senior Center, libraries and parks and recreation through the
end of the March. The Emergency Operations Center is open and monitoring the
pandemic and helping elected officials make informed decisions about limiting
operations and potential closings. White County is providing COVID-19
information on its website, www.whitecounty.net, and also on the Emergency
Management Facebook page.
Below is a list of White County operations
and their current operating status. Please understand that the COVID-19 pandemic is a very fluid situation that may call
for a change of operations at any time.
White County will update this information on a daily basis...
As the Nation comes together to slow the spread of COVID-19, on March 16th the President issued updated Coronavirus Guidance for America that highlighted the importance of the critical infrastructure workforce.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) executes the Secretary of Homeland Security’s authorities to secure critical infrastructure. Consistent with these authorities, CISA has developed, in collaboration with other federal agencies, State and local governments, and the private sector, an “Essential Critical Infrastructure Workforce” advisory list. This list is intended to help State, local, tribal and territorial officials as they work to protect their communities, while ensuring continuity of functions critical to public health and safety, as well as economic and national security..
White County, Ga. – White County closes tourism accommodations to prevent spread of COVID-19
Hotels/motels, inns, short-term vacation rental cabins, campgrounds, recreational vehicle parks and resorts located in White County will be closed to new reservations and business starting Friday, April 3 at noon. Further, any non-White County residents who are currently staying at any of these facilities have until noon, Saturday, April 4 to vacate the county. The closings are part of an amendment to White County’s COVID-19 State of Emergency Resolution that was approved in an emergency called meeting of the White County Board of Commissioners today.
White County officials are posting notices and barricading the area of Chambers Road at the Yonah Mountain Trailhead in anticipation of persons within and outside of the county using the USFS trail.
The USFS closed several trailheads in the region due to social distancing requirements in place by local, state and federal guidelines and emergency declarations. Unfortunately, persons are not following these guidelines, and some are traveling from areas where shelter in place orders is in effect.
For the last two days, county public works under coordination and advisement of Emergency Management has barricaded the Yonah Mountain Trailhead and placed barrels and cones along the public right of way. Several complaints were received over the weekend from persons parking along the county right-of-way, mostly out of county residents.
These measures with enhanced traffic enforcement from the Sheriff’s Office and US Forest Service Law Enforcement will hopefully discourage the use of this area. Enhanced patrols will also be in place for other trailheads in the county.
As always, citizens should report illegal parking and dangerous road conditions, by calling 9-1-1.
As a reminder the USFS has closed the following locations in White County: Yonah Mountain Trailhead, Raven Cliff Falls, Duke Creek Falls, Anna Ruby Falls, along with campsites at Anna Ruby Falls, Low Gap, Andrews Cove, and the Upper Chattahoochee.
DNR state campgrounds have closed visitor’s centers and playground areas, such as the Unicoi State Park.
For more information concerning this press release contact the White County Emergency Management Agency at 706-865-9500.
Apple Inc. – in partnership with the White House Coronavirus Task Force and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – released an app and website that guides Americans through a series of questions about their health and exposure to determine if they should seek care for COVID-19 symptoms. The tool provides CDC recommendations on next steps including guidance on social distancing and self-isolating, how to closely monitor symptoms, recommendations on testing, and when to contact a medical provider. https://www.cdc.gov/…/s0327-statement-covid-19-apple-app.html
Learn more about the Coronavirus impact on Georgians. Here you can find information about the latest counts and affected counties from Governor Brian Kemp's Office
If you feel a business is violating the Governor's Executive Order. DO NOT CALL 911.
You can report it at www.gov.georgia.gov click on “Contact Us” and then click on “Constituent Services” which will take you to a form to fill out.
The State of Georgia has a new COVID-19 hotline: 1-844-442-2681. Georgians with questions or concerns about COVID-19 (coronavirus) may call this hotline.
Tune into the White County News' Facebook Stream to learn more about the measures taken by White County Public Safety
and the White County Sheriff's Office..
