Hudson officials detail COVID-19 response

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Hudson officials detail COVID-19 responseOfficials dispel rumor regarding Darnell School  

By Dakota Antelman, Contributing Writer

Hudson – No one in Hudson has the coronavirus. But town officials are already getting worried about the future of a number of events including May’s town meeting as the newly dubbed pandemic gains a foothold in Massachusetts.

Officials are navigating a balancing act of sorts as all this develops, weighing the need to quell mass panic, while simultaneously slowing the spread of the COVID-19 disease doctors say could be between 10 and 30 times deadlier than the flu.

“To date, Hudson has not postponed or cancelled any public meetings,” executive assistant Tom Moses said in an email Friday. “…That said, things change rapidly, and meetings may be affected.”

Things have, indeed, already changed rapidly especially in recent days.

As March began, Mass. cases of COVID-19, long stagnant at just one, spiked in connection with an ill-fated biotech conference in Boston. Ninety-five state residents have since tested positive, over forty of which live in Hudson’s Middlesex county.

More than 400 people are under quarantine across the commonwealth. On March 12, one of those people, in Marlborough, tested positive for the virus, marking the first publicly announced case in the Community Advocate coverage area.

As that happens, at least a dozen area college students are abruptly headed home after a cascade of class cancellations and dorm evictions rained down on campuses across the state and the country this week.

“Our ability to control public anxiety is limited,” Moses said, reflecting on the reactions many have had to these developments. “Folks are inundated with news via TV, radio and the Internet.”

That anxiety, Moses fears, could limit the town’s ability to mass a quorum at its May town meeting, in the event that officials deem it safe to proceed with that event.

“We are working with professional organizations and legislators to craft contingency plans for such disruptions,” he said.

Elsewhere in the community, meanwhile, Moses says he is in particularly close contact with the town senior center and fire department.

“We are extremely sensitive to the vulnerability of our seniors,” he said, acknowledging the disproportionate impacts of COVID-19 on the elderly.

For first responders, he said the town is contending with equipment shortages as nationwide panic buying of items like masks and gloves has snarled supply chains to the police and fire departments.

Inside town hall walls, officials are trying to reconcile this multifaceted situation with level heads. In not cancelling meetings, they’ve begun weekly discussions on the town’s response and safety mechanisms. Those, Moses says, have helped ensure that town government will be able to continue to function even if some staff “are affected” by COVID-19.

Health director Kelli Calo said she’s been in constant contact with state officials and has worked closely with Hudson Public School administrators and staff to keep students there safe.

Though School Superintendent Marco Rodrigues did not respond to multiple requests for comment before press time, the district did announce on March 4 that it was deploying multiple nightly sanitation measures inside its buildings.

Downtown, the Darnell School, which services students with special needs, did abruptly close March 11. Though rumors swirled through the community that an infected person had visited the campus, school official Doug MacPherson confirmed the same day that those statements were false. The Darnell School reopened March 12 after a “deep clean.”

As the COVID-19 outbreak in Massachusetts, the US and abroad stresses locals, officials are still encouraging common sense hygiene. Nationwide, experts are also fighting to remind individuals of the dangers of hysteria surrounding the pandemic.

Back home, in Hudson, officials say they take the issue seriously. And they’re confident in their response to it.

“We are also looking at ways to keep our buildings safe and germ-free,” Moses said. “We will adapt to the changing environment.”

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