Richwood City Council holds emergency meeting to plan for COVID-19 outbreaks

RICHWOOD, WV (WOAY) – The Richwood City Council held an emergency meeting this Sunday to prepare for the COVID-19 crisis.

The purpose of the meeting was to determine if any new ordinances will need to be made regarding what citizens can do, whether or not to cancel events, and to generally inform the public about what to do to protect themselves.

The COVID-19 virus is not officially in West Virginia, but it’s likely some people have already contracted it and have yet to be tested. Chris Drennen, the mayor of Richwood, says some actions should be taken now to prevent potential spread. 

“Right now we’re just encouraging all businesses to limit their gatherings. You know any large social gatherings anyone had planned, if we could get them to cancel or postpone those for at least two weeks until we can review this,” Drennen said. 

Drennen also said that many citizens are upset at the lack of information on COVID-19. She says the emergency meeting served as a way to help bridge those information gaps.

“What we heard today was just complaints that there’s not enough information.”

One key reason for the emergency meeting was to potentially draft new ordinances that would limit social activities, but the council chose to wait for more information first.

“We do have a special ordinance that allows us to limit activity, anything within the city of Richwood City limits, but we’ve decided at this time not to enact that.”

During this time of uncertainty, Drennen suggests citizens check online for the most up to date information and to not panic.

“Go to the websites that are available, try to look out for each other and we’ll get through.”

At this time, the council has yet to enact any emergency ordinances. They’ve only made suggestions to the townspeople.