LEMA advises against large gatherings for New Year celebrations

Lauderdale County Emergency Management Agency advises county residents to avoid large gatherings this evening, when bringing in the new year.

With many people hoping to celebrate amongst loved ones for new year celebrations, the pandemic presents challenges for those who traditionally hold large gatherings for the holiday.

Lauderdale county emergency management director, Odie Barrett is encouraging residents to keep their new year celebrations close-knit, offering a reminder, that COVID-19 is still a concern at this time.

“Everybody’s wanting to push 2020 out and bring 2021 in, and hopefully everybody can be safe doing that. We’re just wanting everybody to be mindful of everybody that’s in the home with them. You know if you can gather by yourself, that’s number one, or just have --you know, a very few amount of your close family and friends come over, that you spend time with on a daily basis anyway. Just knowing that everything’s going to be probably moved inside and we’re probably not going to do a lot of outdoor stuff, -- just to have precautions, that COVID is still here, and COVID is still real,” said Director Odie Barrett.

Anticipating an uptick in COVID-19 cases following new year celebrations, Barrett stated that residents need to be mindful when gathering, due to the possibility of interacting with asymptomatic people.

“We do foresee a spike in numbers coming from the last couple of holidays that we had, with Thanksgiving and Christmas. So, we’re concerned with the amount of asymptomatic people that are out and about that don’t feel bad, they don’t have any symptoms and its still getting around to people who may be vulnerable to this virus and spreading that without knowing,” said Barrett.

The CDC has advised guidelines on how you can safely celebrate the new year—while preventing the spread of COVID-19 listed on its website.