SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO.com) — Though he’s pulling his proposed stay at home ordinance at tomorrow’s city council meeting, Mayor Paul TenHaken says it’s not time to celebrate.
He says the city will be working more closely with big box stores and large employers to stop the community spread of coronavirus.
TenHaken’s South Dakota’s biggest COVID-19 hotspot seems to be cooling off. TenHaken says the outbreak at the plant is on the downslope. He’s now concerned about community spread.
He says the city needs to look at and assist big box stores and major employers like call centers to control the spread in Sioux Falls.
TenHaken is also proposing a new effort to help large businesses in Sioux Falls slow the spread of COVID-19:
TenHaken calls the new effort SOAR, for Supporting Operations And Resiliency. The program will include more resources, tools and even spot checks to help businesses fight the coronavirus.
The Mayor also referenced the temporary closure of Minnesota’s largest pork plant, the JBS plant in Worthington. It is closing to fight a COVID-19 outbreak.
TenHaken says if the JBS outbreak gets really bad, many of those cases could wind up in hospital beds in Sioux Falls.
Out-of-town cases will impact the city’s hospital bed capacity for the peak expected in May.
(Mark Russo, KELO.com News, contributed to this report.)
