Riley County buildings will be temporarily closed to the public. The order recommended by local Health Officer, Julie Gibbs, and approved by the Riley County Commission sitting as the Board of Health, mandates that all Riley County departments, except those deemed essential, be closed to the public beginning at 8 a.m. Thursday or a period of at least 14 days.
"The safety and welfare of our residents, young and old, healthy or vulnerable, is our top priority," Gibbs said. "limiting the amount of people in one place is a proven step that will reduce the spread of this potentially deadly virus. We appreciate and applaud the proactive measures that many of our residents, churches, institutions of higher education and local businesses have taken to help reduce the spread of Coronavirus. As a community we must do more."
The Riley County Commission, sitting as the Board of Health, also issued a 7-day Local Disaster Emergency Declaration. The commission is expected to extend the declaration to at least 14 days next week. The declaration follows suit with declarations of other county governments throughout the state. It allows for the potential use of state or federal funds should they become available.
At this time there have not been any confirmed cases of the Coronavirus in Riley County.