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MANATEE — At an emergency meeting Monday, Manatee County Commissioners voted to declare a local state of emergency. They made a plea to the public to "stop hoarding."

"There is no need," said Manatee County Public Safety Director Jake Sauer.

Sauer said there are no plans to close public beaches at this time, and members of the Florida Department of Health in Manatee County urged the public to take the coronavirus seriously.

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"We must be proactive rather than reactive," Sauer told commissioners. "Inevitably, we will see an increase in cases, but now is not a time to panic; it’s a time to plan and prepare."

The local declaration allows county officials to respond to increasing needs related to the coronavirus and enables the reimbursement by state and federal officials for expenses related to the virus.

Manatee County is now at a Level 2 activation of its Emergency Operations Center, where public health and safety officials will meet regularly.

Dr. Jennifer Bencie, county health officer for the Department of Health in Manatee County, said, "Our goal is to work with the health care system to try and keep the spike down to try and control it."

"(The coronavirus) is different than anything in our lifetimes because of the widespread nature of it," she said. "It will continue to spread if we don’t take appropriate precautions, whether they be limiting international travel or the basics of social distancing."

Bencie urged people to avoid group activities — bars and restaurants have been packed in public defiance of the Center for Disease Control guidelines to cancel events of at least 50 people for up to eight weeks — risking the community spread of the illness that currently has no vaccine.

Bencie said masks aren’t needed for healthy individuals.

"We want to save the other masks for health care providers so they don’t get sick," she said. "If you’re well, you don’t need a mask. If you’re sick, stay home."

Sauer told commissioners people should act as if they are sick.

"It’s important for the public to understand that even if you’re not feeling sick or if you don't have signs of the flu, you should go about your business as if you have it so you’re more conscious of what you do."

County Administrator Cheri Coryea asked those who are planning business at public buildings, but who are sick, to use the County’s new 3-1-1 call center instead of leaving home. The new 3-1-1 line helps address questions from the public about the coronavirus and requests for help.

There were no public comments.

Manatee County Area Transit buses and county-owned buildings are performing extra cleaning precautions. All Manatee libraries will operate normally, but programs, events and meeting room use are canceled through March 30.

Library materials that are checked out now will be automatically renewed, and due dates will be extended until April 1. All fines that accrue from now until April 15 will be waived.

Manatee County resident can text: "ManateeReady: to 888777 for #COVID19 updates. #coronavirus

— Carlos R. Munoz (@ReadCarlos) March 16, 2020

Manatee emergency meeting: Privately owned restaurants can only be closed by order of the governor. #coronavirus

— Carlos R. Munoz (@ReadCarlos) March 16, 2020

Manatee Ready

Manatee County spokesman Nicholas Azzara said each of the County’s medical facilities has resource sharing components in their emergency management plans. The state health department marshals the local resources among local agencies and the public.

The Agency for Health Care Administration oversees the number of beds and ventilators at local hospitals through the Emergency Status System.

The County Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan, which is continuously updated, provides local guidelines for all hazards to health and property, Azzara said. It includes DOH’s pandemic response plan.

The most pertinent details of these updates are communicated to the public via the media, Facebook and Twitter, Azzara said.

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