So there’s this.

UPDATE: I’m learning a court defendant injected this in the course of a case. The person reported becoming sick in a restroom of City Hall and feared having been exposed to a coronavirus sufferer on a recent plane flight. (How that would be known isn’t clear.) The person was taken to a hospital. The restroom was closed and court dismissed.

UPDATE II: Mayflower Police Department Facebook posts give details on the event and a preliminary conclusion it wasn’t a serious health threat.


The Faulkner County District Court in Mayflower was ordered to be evacuated by the Judge this morning due to a female who made claims that she may have potentially been exposed to the Coronavirus during a commercial flight. Medical Personnel are on scene and Ashmore Drive is shut down until further notice. At this time we have no reason to be believe the public is in any danger. The State Health Department is also involved. Thank you all for the multiple calls of concern. If any additional concerns that the public needs to be made aware of arises, we will get that information out ASAP. Have a great day!

Then this update:


The Mayflower Police Department has received word that the female who caused concern during the court session this morning has been cleared and criminal charges are pending.

Context: Though no cases of coronavirus have been reported yet in Arkansas, flu continues to take a toll. The Health Department today said 65 Arkansans have died from the flu since Sept. 29, including one child.

The Arkansas Health Department issued this statement:

In collaboration with health care providers, the Arkansas Department of Health has investigated the situation in Faulkner County. The person in question is not under investigation for COVID-19. There are currently no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the state.

The woman who set off the panic has been charged with contempt of court and filing a false report.