MILBRIDGE, Maine (AP) — Maine’s governor extended a “state of civil emergency” order on Wednesday that allows the state to use all available resources in response to the coronavirus pandemic.
Gov. Janet Mills said the emergency order has been extended until at least Sept. 3. It was the fifth time she has extended the order.
Mills said the extension of the order is intended to help the state maintain its relatively low count of the virus. Maine has had less than 4,000 recorded cases of the virus, far fewer than many other states in the Northeast.
“Maine people have taken the tough but necessary steps to protect the health and safety of us all, and it is their actions that are allowing our economy to reopen in a gradual and safe manner,” Mills said. “But we cannot let our guard down.”
Mills said Maine ranks third lowest in the U.S. in terms of positive coronavirus cases when adjusted for population.
In other news related to the pandemic in Maine:
BLUEBERRY WORKERS
Maine officials are investigating a group of positive coronavirus cases among blueberry workers.
Four employees of Wyman’s who had just arrived to begin working at a location in Milbridge have tested positive. It was the third cluster of coronavirus cases at a blueberry processing facility or farm in the state, the Portland Press Herald reported.
Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention Director Nirav Shah said the workers were tested before they began work. The cases have come at a time when the state is struggling to fill agricultural jobs.
Wyman has been using a strict testing protocol to keep coronavirus from spreading during the harvest, said Tony Shurman, president and chief executive officer of Jasper Wyman & Son.
“As soon as these cases were identified, immediate action was taken to move and isolate the individuals, and anyone traveling with them, into pre-designated quarantine locations,” Shurman said. “While quarantined, they will be provided the personal and medical care they need, through our relationship with local public health officials, and they will still receive compensation.”
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NEW CASES
Maine public health authorities reported 17 new cases of the virus on Wednesday. They also reported an additional death. The state has had 124 deaths due to the virus.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, or death.
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FEDERAL HELP
Maine’s two U.S. senators said the state is getting more than $2.6 million from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to support its response to the coronavirus pandemic. They said the state will use the money for surveillance, epidemiology, laboratory capacity, infection control, mitigation, communications and preparedness and response activities.
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This story has been corrected to show the blueberry company employees had just arrived to start work and were not working yet.
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