From the Mayor’s Office – The Recurring, the Pervasive, our Reality

With the change of seasons comes a change of activity in our daily lives. School has begun, we are inside more often. Sadly, the cast of COVID-19 as a health threat remains ever-present. We hear about recent occurrences and have acquaintances and family that have been affected. It worries us and it has become part of our reality.

The Village has been an advocate and participant in the Orange County Department of Health Wastewater Surveillance Program. The purpose of the program is to collect wastewater samples entering our treatment plant and have them analyzed for the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Through this surveillance, we can gauge any significant increase in the spread of COVID-19 in our community. Early detection and notification, even prior to symptoms developing, provides the opportunity to prevent further spread of COVID-19.

Recently, we received the following notification from the Orange County Department of Health:

“Lab testing has detected increased SARS-CoV-2 metrics for your area, especially for the month of September. Your Village stands with a SARS-CoV-2 detection level of: High (75-100%). Concurrently, COVID rates and hospitalization rates are increasing statewide.

The following public health protective measures are recommended by the CDC at this time for your area which might include, but not limited to:

• Wearing a high-quality mask or respirator for all persons over the age of 2 who are medically able to tolerate it.

• Stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines, including the new vaccine which is recommended for everyone 6 months of age and above. … A recommended tool for finding local COVID-19 vaccines in your municipality is the Vaccine Finder Tool: https//www.vaccines.gov/

Additional recommendations can be found directly on the CDC webpage: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/your-health/covid-by-county.html
We are grateful to work with Orange County Department of Health on this valuable project that gives us preventative warning so that we can help minimize its effect on our community.

The next Village Board meeting will take place on Monday, October 2, 2023, at 7:30 p.m. at Village Hall, 77 Main Street.