COROANA VIRUS DISCUSSION

A round-table discussion held at Gulf Coast State College about the coronavirus featured representatives from fire departments and emergency management services across Bay, Walton and Okaloosa counties. Jimmy Patronis, Florida chief financial officer, said the State is ready to assist Northwest Florida’s first responders as necessary. While 16 people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with the virus there are no critical alerts in Florida. Julius Halas, State Fire Marshal, said the meeting was mainly to make sure local departments are prepared in case of an outbreak as they’re often the first on scene to provide care until the ambulance arrives.