First confirmed COVID-19 patient in Alabama is civilian employee on Maxwell Air Force Base

State plans to use $5 million fund to establish county testing centers

Diagnoses expected to increase

Six total cases confirmed as of 9 p.m. Friday

Alabama will close its Pre-K and K-12 public schools this coming week amid increasing civic measures to limit Alabamians' exposure to the novel coronavirus and adequately fund a public health response to the rapidly spreading respiratory illness.

The closure will go into effect at the end of Wednesday, March 18.

Gov. Kay Ivey on Friday declared a state of emergency in Alabama and announced a 2.5 week break for public schools. State Superintendent Eric Mackey said they plan to reopen on Monday, April 6, but will reassess the situation the final week of March.

The move came just hours after Alabama confirmed its first official COVID-19 patient, a civilian employee at Maxwell Air Force Base who fell ill after traveling home from Illinois. By the end of Friday, the Alabama Department of Public Health had confirmed six COVID-19 patients, all in separate counties.

More:Alabama coronavirus: First case confirmed in Montgomery is military base employee

Harris said cases are expected to rise as testing continues to ramp up. Ivey's emergency declaration and school closures follow surrounding states, such as Tennessee, that have seen exponential increases in confirmed cases this week.

On Saturday, Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed also declared a local state of emergency.

Life for many Alabamians will change drastically in the coming weeks. Prior to the first diagnosis, a number of Alabama colleges and universities shuttered in-person classes, asking students to move out of dorms and transition to online learning.

More:2nd coronavirus case confirmed in Alabama; at least 3 more possible cases

COVID-19 causes mild to moderate flu- and pneumonia-like illnesses in those young and relatively healthy. Children in particular are less likely to be infected.

But it can be deadly, particularly in those older than 60 or with pre-existing health conditions. There are also rising concerns about how equipped American hospitals are to handle large influxes of cases, as currently seen in Italy.

A data analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that Alabama ranks among the top six most at-risk states for its adult population. The analysis examined state-level health data to determine the percentage of "high risk" adults, which include all adults over the age of 60, as well as young adults with heart disease, cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or diabetes.

The data show more than 45 percent of Alabama adults fall under those categories and are at higher risk of developing serious illness if infected with coronavirus.

Health experts say social distancing — avoiding large crowds, even if you are not sick yourself and it means disrupting your normal routine — is key in slowing the spread of the illness to keep from overwhelming health care providers.

More:A self-quarantine seems brutal when you're not sick with coronavirus – but it really is for the greater good

What does Alabama's school closure mean for private schools and lunch programs?

State officials decided to shutter schools to allow families time to make alternate child-care arrangements.

Friday's announcement does not include the state’s private schools but Mackey said many have expressed their intentions in following the public schools’ schedule.

Valiant Cross Academy announced Friday night they planned to follow the same schedule and close at the end of March 18.

Schools are not expected to provide virtual learning to students.

Mackey advised that students and family take this seriously while not in school and practice social distancing.

When it comes to reopening the schools, Mackey said he and public health department officials will factor whether or not the virus is continuing to spread and if it is impacting certain communities more than others.

Mackey said he has stressed to superintendents to continue updating his department, especially on whether any confirmations related to student, staff or family members. State officials are also working on plans to feed children who may rely on their school lunchroom for regular meals.

Under federal law, schools are required to serve meals in a group setting, such as a lunchroom. But during a public health emergency, like the one declared by Ivey on Friday, the USDA can waive this law.

Mackey said they have submitted the waiver to the USDA and is confident the state will get it. It will allow them to continue feeding students who attend schools with more than 50% deemed economically disadvantaged.

The logistics of how meals will get to the students has yet to be determined, though. Some options considered have been having parents pick up meals from the schools or having them delivered through community volunteers, Mackey said.

What resources does Alabama have to fight COVID-19?

Under Alabama law, an emergency declaration starts a 60-day period which activates the state’s disaster response and recovery plans. An emergency declaration gives the governor broad powers “as are necessary to promote and secure the safety and protection of the civilian population.” The governor can direct state agencies to address the emergency as the governor sees fit and purchase material “without regard to the limitations of any existing law.”

The governor or the Legislature can extend the emergency period if they desire.

Health officials say they now plan to implement testing centers across the state, thanks to a $5 million fund released by the Alabama Legislature on Thursday.

Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh, R-Anniston, said the funding was for COVID-19 response while the state awaits $8.1 million from the federal government to address the outbreak.

Harris said much of the Legislature funds will be used for screening centers around the state. He expects initially 20 to 25 around the state, with plans to have screening centers in "virtually every county."

"Screening centers will streamline the process somewhat. For obvious reasons, you can see why we wouldn't want someone with a lot of symptoms going to an Emergency Department and get screened. We're working closely with the Hospital Association to get these locations identified," Harris said.

Before Friday's positive tests, the state lab had tested fewer than 50 patient samples, all of which tested negative. Private labs, recently able to test for COVID-19 infections, had also reported all negatives.

ADPH on Thursday announced it was training two additional microbiologists to help in COVID-19 testing in the state lab, and that officials had "liberalized" the initial federally recommended criteria on who would be eligible to receive the test.

Alabama's state lab was certified to begin COVID-19 testing March 5.

In a statement released on social media, ADPH said that the microbiologists required to run the test require specific certification and training, and Alabama currently has a "limited staff who can perform this testing. We are quickly training 2 additional microbiologists to perform these tests."

Meanwhile, state legislators designated $5 million, in addition to $8.1 million allocated from the federal government, to help fund COVID-19 response.

The Alabama Department of Public Health twice relaxed criteria this week for who should be eligible and prioritized for testing. Initially, ADPH officials said they were following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations, which limited testing to people with recent travel to just a few countries that first saw outbreaks. Days later, Alabama expanded it to people who had traveled from domestic "hot spots."

At that time, a person's doctor had to do an evaluation and then request testing from ADPH, who would determine if it was "appropriate."

By Thursday, State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris said the department had decided to "liberalize" the criteria again, cutting out the ADPH evaluation so a person could receive testing just on their doctor's recommendation.

Over the weekend, screening centers began to pop up around the state.

Who is Alabama's first COVID-19 patient?

Hours after the Alabama Department of Public Health Department confirmed its first positive COVID-19 patient, Maxwell Air Force Base announced the patient is a civilian employee at its base.

“The civilian employee is the first confirmed case in the state of Alabama,” said Col. Patrick Carley, 42nd Air Base Wing commander. “The individual is being evaluated and treated by health care professionals. The continued safety of our community is of upmost importance. We are working with our base medical staff and other off base health care agencies to ensure we mitigate the effects of COVID-19 in accordance with established CDC and DOD guidelines.”

Alabama State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris said Friday the patient had other chronic health issues, making him a high-risk and prioritized candidate for COVID-19 testing, which critics say has been slow to ramp up in Alabama as other states identified dozens of infected patients.

The man’s test results were confirmed about 8 a.m. Friday. State officials have not provided other identifying information, such as the man's age, in an effort to protect his privacy.

"That person is medically stable, to my understanding," Harris said.

Other patients were identified in Elmore, Jefferson, Limestone and Tuscaloosa counties. A sixth patient was identified as being "out of town" by ADPH. The Montgomery Advertiser has asked ADPH to clarify that designation, but ADPH officials were not available for comment by press time.

What is closing in Montgomery and the River Region?

A day after many Alabama colleges, following other states’ lead, began shuttering their campuses, the news triggered a new wave of closures and cancellations across the River Region as public health officials urged people to take social distancing measures in an effort to slow the spread of the respiratory virus.

Prior to the diagnosis, Alabama was one of the last states in the nation to confirm COVID-19 cases, though experts cautioned that this was not indicative of whether or not the coronavirus had spread to the Yellowhammer state.

Despite days without a confirmed patient, public health officials said it was a matter of when, not if, Alabama would begin seeing official cases.

“We have been expecting to find a case for some time. We’ve tried to be very open about that. We are not surprised that we found a case,” Harris said Friday at a news conference announcing the confirmed case.

The city of Montgomery moved to shut down any large public events, on advice from public health officials who are cautioning people to avoid gatherings of hundreds of people.

All city sponsored events, including an upcoming half-marathon and rodeo, are canceled effective immediately. City buildings may be limited in terms of access, though access to “essential city services” will not be.

The city has asked people stay inside, echoing public health recommendations to practice “social distancing,” and encouraged institutions and companies cancel events.

Despite major state universities such as the University of Alabama and Auburn University shuttering their campus and transitioning online classes for several weeks, Alabama K-12 education leaders say they have not yet made a decision to close Alabama schools. Montgomery Public Schools has cancelled all sporting events until further notice.

Several River Region places of worship have also suspended in-person worship services and classes.

"The church is the heartbeat of our lives and the heartbeat of this community; yet, we have the responsibility of helping mitigate this virus, to protect the flock, and to keep our community safe," First United Methodist said in a message to its congregation.

Worship service cancellations: These churches will not meet after confirmed COVID-19 case

Reporters Brian Lyman, Kirsten Fiscus, Krista Johnson, Safiya Charles and Sara Macneil contributed to this report.

Contact Montgomery Advertiser reporter Melissa Brown at 334-240-0132 or mabrown@gannett.com.