NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — The Tennessee Department of Health confirmed additional COVID-19 cases in Davidson County, bringing the total to 140.
Dr. Alex Jahangir said the age range for all confirmed cases in Nashville is from 11 to 73 years old. Of the confirmed cases, one patient has died from complications due to the new coronavirus and two others remain hospitalized. 19 people have recovered from the virus, an increase of four in the past 24 hours.
The remaining 111 cases are self-isolating at home and have mild and manageable symptoms.
Nashville Mayor John Cooper said he and Dr. Jahangir had a conference call with more than 250 faith leaders and urged all houses of worship to temporarily pause in-person services. He also proclaimed Sunday as a city-wide day of prayer to "lift up all Nashville residents during this difficult time."
To help slow the spread of the virus, all Davidson County restaurants are closed to dine-in customers. Mayor Cooper encouraged Nashvillians to support local businesses by ordering take-out or using drive-thru service, curbside pickup and other delivery services.
Metro Water Services, Nashville Electric Service and Piedmont Natural Gas are working to provide help for customers during the pandemic:
- Metro Water Services will not assess late fees or disconnect water services to any MWS customers for the next two months. Additionally, any MWS customer who needs to defer payment within this two-month period may make a request by calling (615) 862-4600. Account balances that are deferred will be evenly spread out over a 12-month period.
- Nashville Electric Service has suspended all disconnects, including disconnects for nonpayment, and late fees until May 31. Contact NES at (615) 736-6900 for more information.
- Piedmont Natural Gas is suspending disconnections for non-payment, waiving late fees and insufficient check fees, and offering flexible payment terms to both residential and commercial customers upon request. Contact Piedmont Natural Gas at 1-800-752-7504 for more information.
The Nashville COVID-19 Task Force is creating two new Community Assessment Centers for people to get tested for the virus.
Metro Nashville has launched a website to keep residents informed on COVID-19 cases in Davidson County. COVID19.Nashville.Gov will provide new information as it becomes available.
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See all our coronavirus coverage here
COUNTY-BY-COUNTY CASES IN TENNESSEE
What is COVID-19 (a.k.a. the new coronavirus?)
According to the World Health Organization, coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases. Examples include the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV). A novel coronavirus (nCoV) is a new strain that has not been previously identified in humans. COVID-19 stands for "Coronavirus disease 2019," which is when this strain of the coronavirus was discovered.
What are the symptoms?
The CDC says patients confirmed to have the 2019-nCoV reportedly had mild to severe respiratory illness with:
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
Or at least two of the following symptoms:
- Fever
- Chills
- Repeated shaking with chills
- Muscle pain
- Headache
- Sore throat
- New loss of taste or smell
At this time, the CDC believes symptoms could appear as soon as two days after exposure, or as long as 14 days.
Prevention
The CDC is recommending "common sense" measures such as:
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
- Stay home when you are sick.
- Cover your mouth and nose with a cloth face cover when around others.
- Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
- Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.
