NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — The Nashville Rescue Mission will test all of their residents and staff for COVID-19, over the next two days. This comes after four residents at the city's homeless shelter at the Nashville Fairgrounds tested positive for the Coronavirus on Tuesday. After conducting contact tracing, city health leaders believe some of those individuals who tested positive may have also spent time at the Nashville Rescue Mission.
"I want to know if I got Coronavirus or not," said Michael, a resident at the Nashville Rescue Mission for the last two months. "It’s gonna help everybody here that we know if we got it or not."
Rev. Glenn Cranfield, CEO of the Nashville Rescue Mission, says previously they've only had one case of COVID-19 at the Nashville Rescue Mission. Anyone who tests positive will be taken to the Fairgrounds complex to a separate building from the other healthy Fairgrounds residents.
In the meantime, Rev. Cranfield says they are taking extra precautions to social distance inside the facility. "They’re issued a mask and wear this while on campus," Cranfield explained.
Weeks ago, Cranfield suspended the volunteer and chaplain programs at the rescue mission to ensure less people were coming and going each day. They've also been able to reconfigure the sleeping areas to accommodate more space between beds. "We’re able to sleep people in the shelter further apart and they’re able to eat in the cafeteria farther apart," Cranfield said.
Michael says a big part of feeling at home is knowing that you're safe. He's encouraging everyone to go get tested, that way you know where you stand. "It’s important for everyone to get a test because people can be walking around and have it and not even know it because you got different symptoms," Michael said.
