At a conference on Thursday, Nevada governor Steve Sisolak declared a state of emergency in regards to the recent domestic and international spread of COVID-19.

“Declaring a state of emergency, while certainly a mark of the seriousness with which we are taking this effort, is not a reason to panic,” said Sisolak.

This announcement comes amidst the rapid growth of COVID-19 throughout the United States and the official designation of COVID-19 as a pandemic by the World Health Organization earlier this week.

As of March 12, the Southern Nevada Health District has reported eight cases in Clark County, seven of which are presumptive positives, while one has been confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

This increase has followed Wednesday reporting that a woman who stayed at The Mirage tested presumptive positive for COVID-19. She was in Las Vegas for the Women of Power Summit from March 5-8, which had over a thousand attendees.

Clark County School District, in a CCSD Coronavirus Response Update, has taken numerous actions “out of an abundance of caution” to help reduce the spread of the virus, including, but not limited to:

• Suspension of all school, district, and non-district sponsored athletics, extracurriculars, assemblies, practices, events, and more; activities and events scheduled later in the year (included graduation) will be evaluated as the situation continues to progress
• Restrictions on school-associated international and out-of-state travel
• Removal of salad bars in school cafeterias
• Increase in in surface cleaning as a proactive measure to prevent the spread of COVID-19

The full list of changes can be found here.

These changes have already had significant effects here at Clark, with the cancellation of the Nevada HOSA State Leadership Conference this Sunday and the suspension of numerous other events and activities over the coming months.

Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman, however, took a less cautious view during a Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority board meeting.

“In 1933, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt said, ‘There is nothing to fear but fear itself,'” quoted Goodman. “This fear has taken over the world and if you look and talk to doctors, I have yet to see a doctor who espouses… what the media is doing here.”

Goodman echoed similar sentiments during a Tuesday USA TODAY Network interview, calling out MGM’s decision to close hotel buffets as an effort to hinder the virus’s spread.

“For MGM to buy in and have the fear — that’s not the right direction,” she stated.

COVID-19’s effects have continued to resonate beyond the Las Vegas hospitality industry. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, a stock market index that measures the stock performance of the thirty largest companies in the United States, saw it’s biggest single day drop since the 1980s, losing 10% of its value Thursday.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has issued three COVID-19-related proclamations to limit travel to the United States. Notable countries included in the travel bans include China, Iran, and Italy. A full list can be found here.

More information regarding coronavirus and CCSD’s response can be found here.

For safety tips and information, visit SNHD’s coronavirus info page or the CDC’s info page.

This is a continually progressing story. For more updates, be sure to visit chargerchant.com. If you have a comment or suggestion, email the author at [email protected].