ATLANTA, GA — Following a national emergency declaration to combat the new coronavirus, Gov. Brian Kemp on Saturday signed Georgia's first public health emergency declaration. As of noon Saturday, one person in Cobb County has died from the respiratory virus, and the number of confirmed and presumed positive cases of COVID-19 rose from 42 on Friday to 66 cases in 15 counties.

Several chains, including Publix, announced that hours would be shortened for more cleaning, restocking and the health of employees. Beginning Saturday, Publix Super Markets adjusted company-wide store and pharmacy hours company-wide to close at 8 p.m. nightly until further notice.

Other grocery chains, including Kroger, Albertsons, Trader Joe's, Walmart, Target, BJ's and Whole Foods, have not announced any changes to hours, though many have announced staff will be doing more cleaning in stores to curb potential coronavirus spread.



Read more: Publix, GA Grocery Store Hours In Flux For Cleaning, Stocking Kemp urged Georgians to avoid crowds and practice social distancing.

"If a test is negative after experiencing symptoms, that's not an 'all clear'," Kemp tweeted. "You could still be contagious with other viruses, so continue to use best practices to keep people safe and prevent the spread of #COVID19 or any other respiratory illness." A growing number of Georgia school districts around metro Atlanta have announced long-term closures amid growing concern over the new coronavirus. Beginning Monday, all University System of Georgia colleges and universities will temporarily suspend instruction for two weeks.



Kemp also said Saturday that the state has permission to transfer the Georgians at Dobbins Air Force Base to their homes as soon as possible to self-quarantine. More than 30 residents of the state were on board the Grand Princess cruise ship, and had been quarantined off the coast of California due to the coronavirus.

The state's lone fatality is a 67-year-old man who was hospitalized at WellStar Kennestone after testing positive for COVID-19 on March 7, authorities said. In addition to being infected with coronavirus disease, the victim also had underlying medical conditions, a news release said.

