Macon County has lifted the regulations put in place to combat the spread of COVID-19, effective May 8, and will allow hotels and other temporary lodging to open in time for Memorial Day.
That news comes as Macon County reported its third COVID-19 case on April 29. The individual is between the ages of 25-49, according to the health department.
“The patient had contact with a known COVID-19 case outside of Macon County,” according to health department news release. “The patient is not experiencing any symptoms, and will isolate at home for 14 days. No further information will be released about this individual.”
Health officials are working to identify close contacts of the individual.
“The CDC defines close contact as being within approximately 6 feet of a person with an infection with COVID-19 case for a prolonged period of time of 10 minutes or longer,” according to the health department. “Based on information provided by the individual, county health officials will assess risks of exposure, determine which if any additional measures are needed such as temperature and symptom checks, quarantine and/or testing.”
If you believe that you may have COVID-19, please call the health department at 828-349-2517. The call center is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Cooper extended the stay-at-home order until May 8, when a three-phase reopening plan will begin. Both the county and the Town of Franklin are following that schedule.
Phase one will allow most businesses to reopen, including clothing stores, sporting goods stores, book shops and housewares stores.
“We’re patiently waiting on information from the governor as far as what phase one will definitely look like,” said Warren Cabe, the director of Macon County Emergency Services who is heading up the county’s coronavirus efforts. “We’re still optimistic that we’re on track to keep North Carolina on a good track for reopening.”
The Town of Franklin is also following the governor’s plan.
“I don’t know that you’ll see a huge amount of difference in the first two weeks,” Cabe said. “By the third week of May you’ll start to see a lot of changes about what will be allowed.”
Temporary lodging – hotels, campgrounds, Air BNBs – should be able to open for business on May 8.
“Macon County has no prohibitions on short-term lodging, and any prohibitions on such lodging would be through the N.C. governor’s executive orders,” Cabe said.
“We intend to follow Cooper’s three-phase-plan with the stipulation that our state of emergency remains in place to pause or take further actions if our trends in Macon County were to become serious enough to jeopardize our health care system’s ability to provide adequate service to all of our residents and visitors,” Cabe said.