A year ago today, the first COVID-19 case was reported in North Carolina. Quickly, the lives of local residents began to change.
Schools were closed to in-person learning on March 14. Limits were placed on gatherings also on March 14. Restaurants were closed for dine-in on March 17. More businesses were closed on March 23. And the coronavirus crept into our community, infecting 11 people and killing one person before March ended.
Cherokee County Health Director David Badger hasn’t reflected on the past year too much, and respects that early decisions were based on what we knew then. He wishes there were less constraints on testing initially, and that getting testing kits wasn’t an issue.
He also wishes there was a different approach from the federal government, especially since our county borders two states. The different practices and mandates caused some confusion.
Badger also thinks the mask supply early on hurt the messaging about wearing masks. The supply available was simply needed for the health-care community.
“It wasn’t because masks aren’t an effective tool,” Badger said. “I think some of that messaging has been challenging.”
Badger also wished the messaging hadn’t become political.
It’s in the community
Shortly after both North Carolina and Georgia reported their first cases of COVID-19 during the first week of March, the Cherokee County Health Department reassured the community in the March 11 edition of the Cherokee Scout that they were prepared, and that the risk wasn’t high at the moment.
Unfortunately, the virus was already in the area.
On March 8, a resident attended services at Church at Liberty Square in Georgia. According to the Atlanta
Journal-Constitution, as many as 15 cases of the virus were traced back to that day’s services, including the person who became the seventh person to test positive in Cherokee County.
Two days later, John C. Campbell Folk School held what would become its last contra dance. The health department had already provided guidance on prevention of the spread of the virus to both the school and Harrah’s Cherokee Valley River Casino & Resort, and the school was taking precautions. A person visiting family who happened to attend the dance ended up becoming the first person to test positive in Cherokee County.
While both the folk school and the casino draw visitors from bigger areas into the community, Badger said he expected the casino to be more likely to be the sight of the first case, as the folk school is more popular during the summer months – he didn’t see it as a threat at the time. Badger praised the folk school for doing everything right before and after learning about they had a positive case.
“It wasn’t their fault,” Badger said. “The folk school did nothing wrong.”
They took precautions at the dance, closed its doors to the public before government orders began, and were open to the community when they learned of the first case. He said many perceived getting the virus as shame or guilt, but the folk school looked at it differently taking care of the community as a result.
“That was a phenomenal thing,” Badger said.
By the end of the month, the casino did have its first possible case.
Room for improvement
Badger said there’s always room for improvement, and is confident there were things local leaders, including himself, could have done better. He said he was in constant contact with local officials throughout the pandemic, and tried to provide objective advice.
“I think for the most part, they were open-minded and listened to things,” Badger said. “I don’t see anything wrong with decisions made at the local level.”
He said shutting borders wasn’t the best option for the local economy, as there is so much crossing of state and county lines for work and other essential needs.
“If we did live in bubble, I could see it as a viable solution,” Badger said.
He added that decisions made by local leaders were well-intentioned.
Mayor James Reid and the Andrews Board of Aldermen did try to protect the citizens of Andrews by closing off the town to visitors at the end of March.
“I think that was one of the biggest mistakes we made,” Reid said. “But at the time, I felt like it was the right thing to do.”