By BECKY KISER
Hays Post
With an expected increase in diagnosed COVID-19 cases following the Thanksgiving holiday, Hays Police Chief Don Scheibler is encouraging people to "follow the city mask mandate" and practice basic hygiene, including frequent hand washing.
"I think everybody's confident we're going to see a spike of COVID cases in the community," Scheibler said.
He thanked people who are complying with the mask mandate, especially businesses.
The Hays ordinance, passed by the city commission July 23, requires wearing face coverings indoors and outdoors when social distancing of at least 6 feet is not possible. There are 10 exemptions, including children age 8 and younger.
Those violating the ordinance can be fined.
"Approximately nine tickets have been issued," Scheibler reported. "The majority of those have been warnings."
He said police officers are first focused on educating the public about the ordinance.
The pandemic has changed procedures when a Hays police officer is requested by the public.
"When you call into our communications center, the dispatchers will ask you what we call 'COVID questions' — 'Are you having any symptoms?' — to better prepare ourselves and how to respond to those calls for service.
"We know some people are going to need our assistance, and we want to be able to provide that assistance. [Our officers] have chosen a dangerous profession, and we're taking steps to try and keep them safe," Scheibler said.
Hays police officers wear face masks and also have PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) in their vehicles, including special masks to wear if they must administer CPR to a victim.
Scheibler says the best tool they have is the face mask.
"We've had several situations where we've had to deal with citizens who are being arrested. We were wearing masks, and we got masks on them right away.
"The [Ellis County] Health Department later confirmed the exposure was limited," meaning neither the offenders nor officers contracted coronavirus during those situations.
"It just reinforces to me the importance of wearing that mask," Scheibler said.
During a special meeting on Oct. 2, city commissioners approved extending the ordinance until there is a seven-day average of new cases of COVID-19 per day in Ellis County of five or fewer for 14 consecutive days.
The Ellis County Health Department on Friday reported the average number of new coronavirus cases per day in the last seven days rose from 19 on Wednesday to 26 on Friday.
Ellis County commissioners took no action at a special meeting Nov. 23 on a proposed resolution to opt out of Gov. Laura Kelly's new executive order for a statewide face mask mandate, effectively allowing the mandate to go in place countywide.