Mayor David Alvey and pastors from area churches today urged residents to stay home this weekend because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Wyandotte County reached 300 positive COVID-19 cases on Friday, the highest number of any county in Kansas. The county has had 20 deaths in all, including four more on Friday, according to Health Department figures.
At a news conference at City Hall, Mayor Alvey introduced local religious leaders who urged people to stay home this weekend, even though it is Passover and Easter time.
“They want us to keep the faith during this most holy time for Christians, but they want us to keep safe,” Mayor Alvey said.
A previous order issued by the Wyandotte County medical officer limited religious gatherings to 10 or fewer people, because some religious gatherings here were responsible for transmission of COVID-19, he said.
Then the local order was superseded by Gov. Laura Kelly’s order for the state of Kansas, limiting religious gatherings to 10 or fewer, and that was overturned on Thursday by the state’s Legislative Coordinating Council. The governor said at another news conference today that the Kansas Supreme Court will hear her lawsuit on this case on Saturday.
The Wyandotte County medical officer issued a new order on Thursday night, again limiting church gatherings to 10 or fewer, and laying out guidelines for those churches that want to hold drive-in services.
“The pastoral leadership of Wyandotte County is not concerned with the political debate at the state level, but they are deeply concerned about the health of their communities, and no matter what the letter of the law allows or does not allow, the pastoral leadership wants to make a clear statement to their flocks that they will abide by the spirit of the law,” Mayor Alvey said. “The spirit of the law is simply this, that we must all stay at home, we must all sacrifice coming together in our church buildings, and we must sacrifice coming together even as a family, because we must stop the spread of coronavirus.”
He said this week is a perfect example of sacrifice for one another so that they can take up new life together.
Dr. Allen Greiner, chief medical officer for Wyandotte County, said public health is about sacrifice and unity. In times of need, coming together and working as a unit is crucial, he said.
“We know now that COVID-19 is an extremely serious medical condition and worldwide pandemic,” he said. Many persons now have known friends and family members who have experienced the illness and know how serious it can be, he added.
Wyandotte County has had three clusters of cases of COVID-19 that started in religious gatherings and facilities, he said. He said they regretted that they didn’t work earlier with these communities, but they are learning something every day about COVID-19.
There are additional clusters in health care facilities that concern them greatly, he said. He added they will do everything possible to investigate these circumstances, education individuals and work with them to make the sacrifices necessary to slow spread of the virus, he said.
“We have the ability to make a difference,” he said. “By working together and paying close attention to the guidelines we’re receiving on a regular basis in terms of social distancing and personal hygiene, we can overcome this and move beyond this pandemic.”
The Rev. Desmond Lamb, pastor of Forest Grove Baptist Church, with the Kansas City, Kansas, Baptist Ministers Union, said it is imperative that pastors and churches comply fully with the guidance and mandates recommended by Mayor Alvey, Gov. Kelly and the experts working with them to stop the spread of COVID-19 in Wyandotte County.
“This is no time for spiritual radicalism,” he said. It is the time for each pastor and church to act responsibly and lead by example, he said.
“In these difficult times we must endeavor to be part of the solution and not part of the problem,” he said. “We must not turn our safe places into sanctuaries of perdition.
“Our actions in these critical moments will determine how soon we will get beyond this health care emergency,” he said.
Monsignor Stuart Swetland, president of Donnelly College, said on a normal Good Friday afternoon, he would not be at City Hall, but would be in church commemorating the passion of Christ.
“These are not normal times,” he said. “We have to express the love we celebrate as Christians using different modalities.”
They are currently educating through different modalities, and need to celebrate their faith using these and other modalities, he said.
“The loving thing to do in this moment of pandemic, the Christian thing to do, the only socially ethical thing to do is to follow the reasonable request of our medical professionals and our political leaders in following the guidelines that they have published,” he said.
Pastor Ismael Lopez, Argentine Assembly of God pastor, said there is a need to maintain safe and socially distancing guidelines at home and at places of worship.
“This impact of COVID-19 on the Hispanic community has been very difficult,” he said.
Regardless of whatever guidelines may or may not be in place, they each recognize the need to refrain from in-person religious services, he said. He said he appreciated the UG’s recent guidelines on drive-in services.
“We have a responsibility to our church members, their families, neighbors and the most vulnerable in Wyandotte County,” he said. “We will save lives.”
The Rev. Cynthia Smart, pastor of Mason Memorial Community Church, a United Methodist congregation, and a police chaplain, said the mayor has shown what leadership looks like by collaborating with the Kansas City, Missouri, mayor and other counties in addressing COVID-19.
She said her church suspended services March 22 until it is safe to come together.
“My main focus was to keep the congregation and members safe and healthy, and also the community,” she said.
She encouraged all of the faith community here and in surrounding counties to continue to maintain social distancing, to suspend gatherings of more than 10 persons, and to encourage them to use technology to reach congregations and continue to care for their congregations in a virtual way.
“God’s word will still go out and reach the ears, the minds and the souls of those that God is calling,” she said. “We, as the faith community, must lead by example for the well-being of our congregations and our community.”
Riverbend facility investigation continues
When asked about the Riverbend post-acute care and rehabilitation facility in Kansas City, Kansas, Dr. Greiner said they are continuing the investigation there with multiple staff members and an epidemiologist. There were three more deaths reported Friday, for a total of 10 deaths, and 84 residents, most of the residents of the home, now have been infected, according to the local Health Department report today. There are 135 residents at the home.
“The facility is working as hard as they can under the circumstances,” he said.
He said they believe the cluster of cases arose during an incubation period when individuals had no idea they were infected. Because of the close quarters and conditions of individuals there, it spread rapidly, he said.
Many staff are now having to work 16-hour days, every day, he said.
He said they are trying to find them additional resources, with other agencies, to get them through. They also will do more training in facilities across the county, he said.
“It teaches us that the level of infectivity, especially among people who may not yet be showing symptoms, can be severe,” Dr. Greiner said. “When people are in close quarters, there is a high rate of transmission.”
Even with gatherings of 10 or fewer people, they would like to see people social distancing to reduce spread, he said.
They are now recommending to use precautions when caring for others, using hygiene and wearing masks, he said.
Drive-in services allowed
Drive-in services in church parking lots are being allowed this weekend if certain rules are followed. Dr. Greiner said people should still be careful. Individuals should stay in a vehicle with people from the same household, he said. Individual vehicles may roll down their driver’s side windows but not both windows, he said. Individuals may not leave their cars at all, he said. People should arrive only at a brief time before the service and then leave right afterward, he said.
“By staying home, you’re protecting yourself, you’re protecting the neighbors and the whole community,” he said.
The UG’s news conference is online at https://www.facebook.com/cityofkck/.
The UG’s COVID-19 webpage is at https://alpha.wycokck.org/Coronavirus-COVID-19-Information.
See new health order at www.wycokck.org/WycoKCK/media/Health-Department/Documents/Communicable%20Disease/COVID19/LocalHealthOfficersOrdeRegardingReligiousServices04092020.pdf