Around Town

Watertown Events Being Cancelled, Postponed Due to Coronavirus

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Several local events have been cancelled as a precaution due to the outbreak of COVID-19, the Coronavirus. The Majestic 7, Watertown’s new movie theaters, announced that it has postponed its grand opening festivities planned for March 14-15. Dates for the rescheduled event have not been announced. The theaters remain open for regular business. Revels singing group announced that the Spring Sing in Watertown on March 21 has been cancelled.

Around Town

OP-ED: Cancel It if You Can – Taking Responsibility for Controlling the Pandemic

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State Sen. Will Brownsberger

Will Brownsberger is the State Senator for Watertown, Belmont and parts of Boston:

The pandemic will eventually touch many of us. What matters most is the speed of the pandemic. If the virus spreads too fast and too many of us are sick at the same time, we will overwhelm the health care system. People may not be able to get the care they need – for the virus or for any other health problem.  That’s what is starting to happen now in Italy. Doctors are discussing how to make brutal triage decisions effectively condemning weaker patients to die. We need to slow the virus down and since none of us are immune and there is no vaccine yet, we have only one way to protect our community:  To reduce unnecessary contact.

Schools

Watertown Schools Postpones Trip & Events Due to Coronavirus, Plans for Possible Remote Learning

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A Spring Break trip to Europe, a band performance, Mr. WHS and more Watertown Public Schools events have been postponed in the wake of the Coronavirus outbreak in Massachusetts. On Wednesday, Superintendent Dede Galdston sent a letter updating the situation in the Watertown schools as the COVID-19 virus spreads in the area. This comes a day after Gov. Charlie Baker declared a state of emergency in Massachusetts, and several area colleges announced that students would not be attending classes on campus for the rest of the academic year. In Watertown, a planned trip to Germany, Hungary and the Czech Republic has been postponed. About 60 WHS students had signed up to participate.

Around Town

Watertown Officials Start Preparing to Respond to Coronavirus

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A hand sanitizer dispenser has been placed outside the Town Council Chamber as one of the responses to the Coronavirus in Massachusetts. While there are no cases of the Coronavirus in Watertown, the Town’s Emergency Team met Tuesday to discuss ways to respond to the Coronavirus in Watertown. The town has already begun posting information about ways to prevent the spread of COVID-19 (the Coronavirus) in town buildings, and a liquid hand sanitizer dispenser and a sign saying “Keep Calm and Wash Your Hands” were placed outside the Town Council Chamber before Tuesday’s meeting. At Tuesday’s Town Council meeting, Town Manager Michael Driscoll read statements from Director of Public Health Larry Ramdin and Fire Chief Bob Quinn. Ramdin stressed there are no cases of COVID-19 in Watertown, but added that on Tuesday, Gov. Baker declared a state of emergency in Massachusetts due to the Coronavirus.

Around Town

Watertown School Staff Member Sent Home as Precautionary Measure Related to Coronavirus

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A teacher from Watertown High School who had recently traveled abroad, was sent home as a precaution measure after the possibility of having been exposed to the COVID-19 “Coronavirus,” the Watertown Public Schools announced. Watertown Superintendent Dede Galdston said the measure was taken out to be cautious, and was in line with recommendations by local, state and federal health officials. She also talked about a planned WHS trip to Europe during spring break. School officials said there has not been a confirmed case of the Coronavirus in the Watertown Public Schools, however, there is a staff member who went home just in case the person was exposed to the virus. “I can confirm there are no known or suspected cases of Coronavirus in Watertown,” said Galdston, who said she could not comment specifically about the case, or even if the person had been tested, due to federal HIPAA regulations protecting people’s medical records.

Around Town

No Coronavirus in Watertown, Local & State Health Officials Monitoring Situation

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The Watertown Health Department announced that no cases of the deadly Coronavirus have been reported in town, but like officials from the Federal government down to the local level, they are monitoring the situation. The Watertown Health Department is providing updates, information and tips on its webpage: https://www.watertown-ma.gov/186/Health. The spread of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus in Asia and Europe has made headlines. On Wednesday, President Trump announced the appointment of Vice President Mike Pence to lead the Coronavirus effort in the U.S. The same day, the first case of the virus being transmitted to someone who had not traveled overseas was reported in California. Countries that have had major outbreaks have taken steps to try to stop the spread.