Keeping a Watchful Eye for Coronavirus

TAYLORSVILLE, MS - As the state continues to test people for the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), the number of active cases across the state continues to climb. It now stands at 249, with one of those cases being inside Smith County.

Rest assured, your city officials are working with county and state partners to ensure that the risk of community spread from COVID-19 remains low.

Last week, sweeping restrictions were placed on various services across the county.

Effective immediately, all Smith County Schools will be closed tentatively until April 17th, 2020. Kindergarten registration is postponed until further notice, and all events except graduation have been cancelled for the remainder of the school year. The district, realizing its role as more than just a school, will be offering to-go lunches as each of its campuses beginning March 24th-27th. The Central Office will be open on a limited schedule during this time.

Echoing other counties, the Smith County Board of Supervisors declared that a local state of emergency exists in Smith County due to the COVID-19 outbreak. This will free up administrative restrictions and ensure that Smith County's agencies can get the assistance and resources they need to combat the Coronavirus as soon as possible. Along with the State of Emergency, the Supervisors also announced new restrictions on county offices, which are as follows.

• The Board of Supervisor’s Office, Chancery Clerk Office, Circuit Clerk Office, Tax Assessor's Office and Justice Court will be open from 10:00AM - 2:00PM each weekday until April 6th.
• No more than 10 people are allowed in any county office at any time.
• If you have needs that can be met over the phone, please call rather than visit in person. Over 50% of your needs can be met with a phone call!

Here at home, Mayor Kellie Phipps announced that a local state of emergency exists and placed restrictions on visitors to City Hall to help mitigate the threat of COVID-19 to city employees. Citizens can still make payments on their water bills or speak to a city hall employee by utilizing the drive-through window during normal business hours from 8AM-5PM. The mayor also stated that Dixie Youth activities at the Taylorsville Sportsplex have been postponed until further notice aswell. She reminds all citizens of Taylorsville to be vigilant, and practice good hygiene as we all tackle the coronavirus threat together.

Smith County EMA Director Heather Easterling would like to remind Smith County residents that there are no shortage of rumors going around regarding the coronavirus. The Smith County Emergency Management Agency wants to point out that these rumors are hindering the jobs of the ones trying to help you. We are having to stop what we doing to call and verify all these rumors. Please continue to help us prevent the spread of this virus by social distancing, limiting gatherings to 10 people and washing your hands!

If you need information, please contact the Smith County Emergency Management Agency, the Mississippi Department of Health, or visit the Smith County coronavirus information page to verify this information before you post false rumors!

Together, and by sharing only the facts, we will defeat the coronavirus!