Tuscaloosa County and five others in Alabama now have confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health.

Tuscaloosa County is now one of five counties in Alabama with a confirmed case of the coronavirus, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health.

Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox declared a state of emergency in the city, which he announced at a 9 p.m. press conference. No permits will be issued for events on city properties and the grace period for non-payment of city utility fees -- water, sewer and solid waste collection -- will be extended for an additional 60 days.

Maddox didn’t have information about the person who tested positive.

Tuscaloosa County has just one reported case, as do Elmore, Limestone, Jefferson and Montgomery counties.

One other case is listed as "out of town." There have been no deaths in the state attributed to the virus, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Andy North, spokesman for DCH Regional Medical Center, confirmed to the The Tuscaloosa News that hospital staff had collected specimens and sent them for testing, but declined to provide further details.

"You would need to contact the Alabama Department of Public Health for that," he said.

In Alabama, DCH’s specimens were part of the total 28 that the Bureau of Clinical Laboratories and CDC have tested, so far, of the 74 approved for tests, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health.

Of those, just these six had tested positive as of Friday night.

Reach Jason Morton at jason.morton@tuscaloosanews.com or 205-722-0200.

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