• About
    • About Us
    • What We Cover
  • Advertise
    • Advertise
    • Our Advertisers
  • Contact
  • Donate
  • Send News
  • Subscribe

Oak Ridge Today

  • Home
  • Sign in
  • News
    • Business
    • Community
    • Education
    • Government
    • Health
    • Police and Fire
    • U.S. Department of Energy
    • Weather
  • Sports
    • High School
    • Middle School
    • Recreation
    • Rowing
    • Youth
  • Entertainment
    • Arts
    • Dancing
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Television
    • Theater
  • Premium Content
  • Obituaries
  • Classifieds




Roane County requires masks

Posted at 11:15 am November 23, 2020
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

A graph shows the number of new COVID-19 cases in Roane County by month since the pandemic began in March. Note: The data for November is through Nov. 22, a partial month. (Graph by Oak Ridge Today)

Face masks are now required in Roane County to help reduce the spread of COVID-19.

Roane County Executive Ron Woody announced the mask mandate on Monday morning. It is effective immediately.

“I hope this community will take this order without causing more divisions among our citizens,” Woody said. He hopes no law enforcement will be needed.

The west end of Oak Ridge is in Roane County, although most of the city’s residents live in Anderson County.

Roane County’s cases and deaths have risen during the past month, Woody said. Roane County has reported almost four times as many COVID-19 deaths so far this month, 15, than in the previous high month—four in September. The county has reported more new cases so far this month, 717, than in the previous high month—543 in October.

This graph shows COVID-19 deaths and hospitalizations by month in Roane County. Note: The data for November is through Nov. 22, a partial month. (Graph by Oak Ridge Today)

The Tennessee Department of Health reported on Sunday that the 14-day average of new cases in Roane County was 33.9 new cases per day, up from 28.6 in the previous two-week period. The seven-day average of the positivity rate was 13.1 percent, which is high. The positivity rate measures what percentage of tests are positive out of all the new tests each day.

In his announcement, which was posted on Facebook, Woody said there has been some relief in the past few days, and the COVID-19 positivity rate (presumably the daily rate as opposed to the seven-day average) has dropped below double digits for the first time in a while.

On Sunday, the Tennessee Department of Health reported that Roane County has had a total of 2,177 COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began March 21. The 717 new cases reported so far this month is 33 percent of the total. The 15 deaths this month are 65 percent of the total reported since March. Hospitalizations this month, 14, have already passed the July total of 13 and are close to the September total of 15.

In July, before the pandemic became worse, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee gave county mayors the authority to require masks in their counties. Neither Woody nor Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank initially invoked that authority, and although masks are required in Roane County now, they are not required in Anderson County. Face coverings are required in Knox County, which has its own authority to mandate masks.

On Monday, Woody said his office is not involved in enforcing the mask mandate in Roane County because that was not granted in Lee’s executive order, and the mandate has some limitations under the executive order, which is currently in effect through December 29.

A daily snapshot of COVID-19 cases in Roane County on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2020, includes, among other information, the daily number of new cases and the daily positivity rate. (Graphic by Tennessee Department of Health)

Last week, Woody said his concern with a mask mandate was that the regional doctor has the authority in times of health crises to call for a lockdown or mask mandate.

“I have an issue when we start asking counties and maybe one day city mayors to have such authority outside of his/hers areas of expertise,” Woody said on Tuesday. “We should allow the medical doctors to make medical decisions.”

It’s not clear what changed between last Tuesday and this Monday, but Roane County has continued to report new deaths and hospitalizations: nine deaths and four hospitalizations. The county has also reported 155 new cases of COVID-19 in those six days.

Woody said the county continues to encourage residents and businesses to practice healthy hygiene, social distance, wear facial coverings, and stay at home when sick or quarantined.

“It appears that some individuals are not taking this virus as seriously as they should even with the quarantined requirements of schools and businesses,” Woody said last week. “We further monitor the regulations or restrictions placed on our court system. When the state supreme court placed restrictions on our courts, the local government followed their lead. Monitoring data in a health crisis is done by the experts, and as a political subdivision of the state of Tennessee, we will follow orders of the higher government.”

Health experts say face coverings are one part of a layered defense that can help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Other measures include staying at least six feet away from people outside your home, avoiding indoors gatherings when possible, washing hands frequently, and staying home when sick.

Roane County

MonthCasesDeathsHospitalizations
March200
April501
May901
June2801
July286113
August32114
September266415
October54324
November (through Nov. 22)7171514
This chart by Oak Ridge Today shows new COVID-19 cases, deaths, and hospitalizations by month in Roane County.


More information will be added as it becomes available.

You can contact John Huotari, owner and publisher of Oak Ridge Today, at (865) 951-9692 or [email protected]

Most news stories on Oak Ridge Today are free, brought to you by Oak Ridge Today with help from our advertisers, sponsors, and subscribers. This is a free story. Thank you to our advertisers, sponsors, and subscribers. You can see what we cover here.


Do you appreciate this story or our work in general? If so, please consider a monthly subscription to Oak Ridge Today. See our Subscribe page here. Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today.

We also accept donations. You can donate here.

Copyright 2020 Oak Ridge Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Filed Under: COVID-19, Front Page News, Government, Health, Roane County, Top Stories Tagged With: COVID-19, COVID-19 cases, face covering, face mask, mask mandate, positivity rate, Roane County, Ron Woody, Tennessee Department of Health

Advertisements

 

Join the club!

If you appreciate our work, please consider subscribing. Besides helping us, your subscription will give you access to our premium content.

Most of our stories are free, brought to you by Oak Ridge Today with help from our members—advertisers, subscribers, and sponsors.

But some are premium content, available only to members. Those are in-depth, investigative, or exclusive stories that are available only on Oak Ridge Today. They generally require at least four hours to report, write, and publish.

You can subscribe for as little as $5 per month.

You can read more about your options here.

We currently offer five primary subscription options to readers, and they include benefits.

Basic

  • Basic monthly subscription ($5 per month)—access premium content
  • Basic annual subscription ($60 per year)—access premium content

Pro

  • Pro monthly subscription ($10 per month)—access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month
  • Pro annual subscription ($100 per year)—save $20 per year, access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month

Temporary

  • Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate here.

If you prefer to send a check for a subscription or donation, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

Thank you for your consideration and for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support.

Commenting Guidelines

We welcome comments, but we ask you to follow a few guidelines:

1) Please use your real name, including last name. Please also use a valid e-mail address.
2) Be civil. Don't insult others, attack their character, or get personal.
3) Stick to the issues.
4) No profanity.
5) Keep your comments to a reasonable length and to a reasonable number per article.

We reserve the right to remove any comments that violate these guidelines. Comments held for review, usually from those posting for the first time, may not post if they violate these guidelines. Thank you for your patience and understanding. Thank you also for reading Oak Ridge Today and for participating in the discussion.

More information is available here.

More Government News

Power restored to Oak Ridge except for Arboretum

Electric crews repair the damage caused by a crash into a TVA high-voltage transmission tower next to South Illinois Avenue in Oak Ridge on Friday, Jan. 22, 2021. (Photo courtesy City of Oak Ridge) Power was restored … [Read More...]

Charges pending, three injured in crash into TVA transmission tower

Charges are pending after a crash into an electrical transmission tower that caused widespread power outages Friday afternoon, Jan. 22, 2021, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge … [Read More...]

Large transmission tower knocked down, causing power outages

A large electrical transmission tower was knocked down in a crash at Union Valley Road and South Illinois Avenue on Friday afternoon, Jan. 22, 2021, causing widespread power outages. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge … [Read More...]

VITA Tax Center opens Feb. 9

The Oak Ridge Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA) is now in its fourth decade of helping community residents to complete and file tax returns. The 2021 VITA Tax Center will open on Tuesday, February 9, and it … [Read More...]

TVA will blast rock to build substation

The Tennessee Valley Authority is building a substation off Old Edgemoor Lane at Haw Ridge Park, near Edgemoor Road in east Oak Ridge. The construction work is pictured above on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2021. (Photo by John … [Read More...]

More Government

Recent Posts

  • Power restored to Oak Ridge except for Arboretum
  • Charges pending, three injured in crash into TVA transmission tower
  • Large transmission tower knocked down, causing power outages
  • Protesters will say nuclear weapons illegal under UN treaty
  • VITA Tax Center opens Feb. 9
  • Roane State temporarily closes Coffey-McNally Building
  • TVA will blast rock to build substation
  • Council to consider accepting airport grants
  • Police chief to speak to League of Women Voters on Tuesday
  • Martin Luther King Jr. celebration will feature ORHS principal

Recent Comments

  • Matt Bailey on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Mark Caldwell on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Matt Bailey on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Mark Caldwell on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Matt Bailey on Dodson also wants to serve as mayor pro tem
  • Tracy Powers on Planning Commission to consider Main Street apartments, plan revisions
  • johnhuotari on Four incumbents re-elected to Oak Ridge City Council
  • Levi D. Smith on Four incumbents re-elected to Oak Ridge City Council
  • samuel hopwood on Housing: Apartments proposed on former AMSE site
  • Matt Bailey on Robin Smith named Oak Ridge police chief

Search Oak Ridge Today

About Us

About Oak Ridge Today
What We Cover

How To

Advertise
Subscribe

Contact Us

Contact Oak Ridge Today

Copyright © 2021 Oak Ridge Today