Fairborn under state emergency, city buildings closed

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FAIRBORN — Fairborn City Council issued a state of emergency March 16 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“What that means is that it gives us a little flexibility on how we operate as a city and it opens up our emergency operations center so that we can react quickly as things change and we can be more proactive with whatever is going to come up in the next couple of weeks,” City Manager Rob Anderson said on a Facebook live video.

The state of emergency will be in effect until Monday, April 6. Anderson said at that time, city officials will re-evaluate the need to extend the state of emergency or resume business as usual.

Events planned by the city’s parks and recreation department are also canceled through April 6. The start of the season for recreational softball leagues is also delayed indefinitely.

Fairborn Fire and EMS personnel are also following new protocols.

“We have some of the finest fire and EMS personnel around, so we take their health very seriously,” Assistant City Manager Mike Gebhart said, adding that they will now wear eye protection and a mask.

“Our folks will still be on call and ready to assist you with any of your needs,” Gebhart said. “We’re confident that through this process that things will continue as usual for fire and EMS in the city.”

At the time of this writing, council meetings are still open to the public, but additional space will be given to ensure social distancing can occur. To watch council meetings from home, visit http://fairborn.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=2.

“Moving forward, we are following the lead and guidance of the governor’s office and realize that the situation could change any moment and will evaluate the plan for the next meeting April 6,” Communications Manager Meghan Howard said.

Howard emphasized that it is important that citizens stay informed about the COVID-19 pandemic by the information provided by the State of Ohio, which can be found at www.coronavirus.ohio.gov.

“Check up on loved ones in a safe and healthy way,” Howard said, adding that citizens should also practice personal hygiene, stay home when ill, practice social distancing and support small businesses if they are able.

“Health, safety and welfare of the public is paramount and we want that to be the number one priority for the city,” Anderson said.

Fairborn officials will keep citizens updated via its social media channels including Facebook and Twitter. Citizens can also contact the government center directly at 937-754-3016.

“Be safe,” Anderson said. “We are confident that we will get through this and we will be fine on the other end, but we want to make sure we’re careful right now so that we do everything we can to be as safe as we possibly can.”

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By Whitney Vickers

[email protected]

Contact Whitney Vickers at 937-502-4532.

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