8 MARCH 5, 2020 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Coronavirus not as big a threat as other illnesses: Cuomo
BY MARK HALLUM
MHALLUM@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
Governor Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio
made a rare partnership in a Monday press
conference briefi ng the public on coronavirus
as the fi rst confi rmed case in Manhattan was reported
Sunday night.
Cuomo emphasized that while coronavirus is concerning,
it’s not as grave a threat as other illnesses
such as ebola or infl uenza.
“Avian fl u, ebola, SARS, MERS, measles, right? So
we have gone through this before,” Cuomo continued.
“When you look at the reality here, about 80% of people
who are infected with the coronavirus self-resolve…
20% get ill. The mortality rate estimated to be about
1.4% – what does that mean? The normal fl u mortality
rate is about 0.6%.”
The governor repeated several times that the fi rst
confi rmed case in a healthcare worker who recently
returned from Iran did not require hospitalization.
She is treating herself at home with her husband – also
a healthcare worker – and taking “textbook” protocols
to prevent the spread.
Cuomo said the state’s goal is to test about 1,000 people
per day, if necessary, to contain the illness, which
originated in China back in December and has since
spread to dozens of countries around the world.
“There is no doubt that there will be more cases
where we fi nd people who test positive, we said
early on it wasn’t a question of if but when,” Cuomo
said. “Our challenge now is to test as many people
as we can. We’re not going to eliminate the spread
but we can limit the spread and testing is very
important.”
Buses and other transit infrastructure will be
Governor Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio in a side-by-side address about the fi rst coronavirus
case in New York City. Photo by Mark Hallum
treated with bleach, Cuomo said, and the city has reserved
1,200 hospital beds for coronavirus patients.
Cuomo indicated that the state will be contacting
passengers who were onboard the same fl ight from
Iran with the infected woman and her husband. The
patient did not use public transportation; she took a
private car home.
De Blasio reinforced the governor’s stance that the
coronavirus leaves healthy New Yorkers with nothing
to fear but that those with exhibiting fl u-like symptoms
and have a “nexus” to aff ected countries.
“This is a disease we’re learning about, the
international community is learning about, but so far
it does not seem to be a disease that focuses on the kids;
in fact, the opposite,” de Blasio said. “The facts in fact
show us that this is a situation that can be managed.”
Transmission requires prolonged exposure to an
aff ected person, according to offi cials.
Cuomo said he was confi dent in the federal government’s
eff ort to combat the disease, spearheaded by
Vice President Mike Pence, but said they were not
off ering the state nearly enough support. Stemming
the spread of coronavirus, or COVID-19, is bound to be
costly for New York, he said.
MTA to wipe down subways, stations and buses every 72 hours
BY MARK HALLUM
MHALLUM@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
The MTA’s preemptive strive against the coronavirus
is putting its people into service wiping down
stations, trains and buses every 72 hours.
MTA Chair and CEO Pat Foye and other transit
leaders went into detail about their new strategy
on Tuesday at MTA headquarters, reinforcing the
approach as backed by the Centers for Disease Control
and emphasizing that they are a transportation
agency, not a health organization.
Although the sanitation campaign will take place
daily, Foye said, rolling stock may only get the sanitation
treatment only once every three days as they
cycle in and out of service.
The MTA said it kicked this eff ort into high with the
new knowledge that a second person infected in New
York was discovered in Westchester County.
“The MTA is increasing the frequency and intensity
of eff orts to clean and disinfect our system in the wake
of the fi rst reported case – now two – of the novel
coronavirus in New York City. This eff ort started for
real last night,” Foye said. “At this moment, we don’t
know if that patient travelled to New York City using
public transportation or not. To be clear, we are transportation
experts, not medical experts. As such, we’re
following the guidance of CDC, the state Department
of Health and public health professionals.”
Photos provided by the MTA depicted MTA staff
taking spray bottles and scrubbing turnstiles, Metro-
Card scanners, handrails and fl oors. Foye said even
Access-A-Ride rolling stock is included in the plan, but
said they are depending on the Taxi and Limousine
Commission to oversee the eff ort in ride-sharing
vehicles that help disabled New Yorkers get around.
Though Governor Andrew Cuomo said on Monday
that bleach would be the weapon of choice, Foye did
not explain what formula is being used but said the
products are Environmental Protection Agency approved.
As MTA staff is trained to sanitize surfaces
with regularity and only the frequency has been
increased.
Of the 472 stations in the subway system, MTA
employees were able to sanitize 427 of them overnight
while 1,974 buses were cleaned in the same period of
time. Foye says the full fl eet of 5,700 will be rotated
through in three days, an average of 1,900 per night.
About 60% of the Metro-North’s rolling-stock, which
would be the most likely used by the Westchester
patient, has been scrubbed along with 64 of its 124
stations.
Transport Workers Union Local 100 President
Tony Utano exhibited what is likely bad blood from
last week’s full board meeting, in which 2,700 employees
of the MTA are expected lose work because
of cutbacks. His statement regarding the sanitization
eff ort took aim at the potential sacrifi ce transit workers
face and indicated that their work may be taken
for granted by decision makers who implemented the
layoff s
“Once again, TWU Local 100 members on the front
line are taking action to keep riders safe and secure.
From the subway action plan to the coronavirus,
transit workers deliver. If MTA offi cials and the authority’s
chief hatchet man are still thinking about
laying off transit workers, they need to have their
heads examined,” Utano said.
Patrick Warren, the MTA’s Chief Safety Offi cer said
new messaging will remind customers to remain hygienic
and cautious while riding the trains or buses.
“The public service announcement also compliments
our messaging already deployed across our
thousands of subway screens and bus screens,” Warren
said. “The MTA has stockpiles of hygienic supplies
on hand and continues to procure materials.”
Warren added that the MTA has extended the hours
in which their medical facility will provide employees
with fl u shots and are off ering additional hours.
Photo by Mark Hallum.
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