Wayne Health Department starts new mask campaign
The Wayne County Health Department announced a new campaign called “I love Wayne County so I mask up.” The messaging will come through four billboards to be placed throughout the county.
With COVID-19 cases on a significant rise in Wayne County, the Wayne County Health Department announced a new campaign called “I love Wayne County so I mask up.” The messaging will come through four billboards to be placed throughout the county.
The billboards will be placed with two on Route 30 between Wooster and Riceland, one on Route 3 north of Wooster-Creston, and one at the corner of Routes 585 and 57.
“We want to communicate this important message with one voice,” said Nick Cascarelli, Wayne County Health Department commissioner.
The campaign also will include a 30-second commercial on MCTV.
Cascarelli said although promising vaccines are now on the horizon, people definitely cannot let their guard down yet.
“Our first responders and hospitals are doing a great job. Our community leaders have really provided strong leadership. Our schools are doing a great job, and now we need Wayne County residents to continue to step up to help us fight this disease,” he said. “I have mask fatigue too at this point, but we need to continue to be vigilant.”
Wayne County remains on red in the state of Ohio’s COVID-19 warning system.
According to the health department’s website, public health surveillance data indicates COVID-19 activity in Wayne County increased at a faster pace than the previous week.
The cumulative number of cases reported to the health department is 2,637 cases with 1,361 cases reported in the last four weeks. Most of the cases reported in the last four weeks are 20-59 years of age (59%), and the percentage of cases is slightly higher among females (53%). The cumulative number of hospitalized cases is 193 with 83 admitted in the last four weeks. Most of the hospitalized cases admitted in the last four weeks are male (58%) and 60 years of age or older (76%). The cumulative number of COVID-19 deaths among Wayne County residents is 86. Fourteen Wayne County residents have died from COVID-19 in the last four weeks.
On Nov. 21 the Wayne County Health Department issued a stay-at-home advisory. The advisory is not enforceable; it is just an attempt to motivate residents to do their best to mitigate the disease through their everyday behavior, according to Cascarelli.
“Our cases have rocketed up,” Cascarelli said, “and at this point we’re afraid of our hospitals being overrun.”
The advisory lists ways the community can work toward mitigation: stay at home, adhere to the current orders, be familiar with guidance for meetings (indoor and outdoor), don’t have guests in your home, and follow the guidance if you are sick or have potentially been exposed.
Cascarelli said the basics we’ve all come to know still apply: wear masks, practice social distancing, wash hands frequently and be familiar with COVID-19 symptoms.
“These are the tools we know can slow down the spread of COVID-19, and we are asking the community to be diligent about them now more than ever,” he said.