Virginia governor declares state of emergency as coronavirus spreads

Gov. Northam speaks at a coronavirus briefing.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam declared a state of emergency March 12, as the number of people who test positive for coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to grow.

That declaration allows the governor to ease regulatory rules and more easily coordinate with federal officials. In addition, Northam said, large state-run conferences and events are canceled for the next 30 days.

In Virginia, there are 17 presumptive coronavirus cases, including 10 in Northern Virginia.

The most recent cases involve:

• A civilian employee of the U.S. Navy working at the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery at 7700 Arlington Blvd. in the Fairview Park area
• An Arlington resident associated with Christ Church in Georgetown, where the rector and organist were infected. 
• A resident of Alexandria who had spent time at Immanuel Chapel of the Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, where they had close contact with a D.C. resident who tested positive after being in contact with someone at Christ Church.  
• A Fairfax County resident in his 20s who had been in contact with another person who had tested positive. 
• An employee at 7799 Leesburg Pike in Tysons. 

Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) issued a statement that he is voluntarily quarantining himself after a friend he had dinner with tested positive for coronavirus.

Check the Fairfax County Health Department website on coronavirus for updates and advice for how to stay healthy.

The Annandale campus of Northern Virginia Community College is closed through Sunday, March 15, for deep cleaning. An individual on the campus has been possibly exposed to others who had tested positive for the coronavirus (COVID-19).

All NVCC classes are canceled on March 16 and 17 to allow for the transition to online learning. All instruction will be conducted virtually March 18-April 3.

Fairfax County Public Schools are closed Monday, March 16, so teachers can be prepared for distance learning in case a decision is made to close some or all schools.

Related story: Schools will be closed on March 16

Inova issued a statement March 12 restricting visiting hours at its hospitals.

While many employers, including federal agencies, are giving employees more flexibility for teleworking, Capital One, based in Tysons, has asked its 52,000 employees to work from home.

Many local events have been canceled or postponed indefinitely, including the following:

• The Harlem Wizards basketball game at Justice High School (March 12). 
• Camelot Elementary School’s Authors and Artists event (March 12). 
• The legislative town hall with Sen. Dave Marsden and Del. Kaye Kory at the Mason Government Center (March 14). 
• The Beech Tree Elementary School PTA Fun Fair. 
• Rep. Gerry Connolly’s St. Patrick’s Day Fete (March 17).
• All churches in the Episcopal Dioceses of Washington and Virginia are closed for two weeks.  
• The Northern Virginia Conservation Trust’s fundraiser, “An Evening in the Garden” (March 19). 
• The Ballston Quarterfest (May 16)

Cancellations in the broader region include the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in D.C. on March 15, some of the National Cherry Blossom events, and events at the Walter Washington Convention Center in D.C.

All public events at Smithsonian facilities are canceled through May 3, although museums and the zoo remain open. The House and Senate office buildings are closed to the public until April.

The NBA season has been suspended indefinitely, and the Washington Wizards are self-quarantined for the next few days. Major League Soccer and the National Hockey League seasons are temporarily suspended. Major League Baseball is delaying the start of the season for at least two weeks.

Concerts at the 9:30 Club, Lincoln Theatre, and the Anthem in D.C., are postponed for the remainder of March.

In other developments, the Culmore Clinic advised the community that is it not able to provide in-clinic care for people experiencing COVID-19 symptoms but is working to assist people through telemedical visits and has established a Crisis Response Team to monitor the impact of the disease in the community.