COVID-19
Coronavirus Messages from Mayor Brennan
April 7, 2020 - The pandemic of coronavirus is causing disruption to the lives of people throughout the world and Merchantville is no different. I want to assure the residents of Merchantville that throughout this pandemic, the Borough is committed to and has put into place certain contingencies to ensure the continued provision of essential services to the community including police, fire and other first responders, along with public works and other essential services. We are working with our partners at the County, State and Federal levels on contingency planning to obtain resources and to implement effective planning. Residents should rest assured that those services will continue, and residents can expect the same exceptional service and response from those essential services during this unprecedented time. Residents are also reminded that our community is built upon our relationships and now is a time to show courage and calm, avoid panic and care for ourselves and our neighbors by taking measured actions such as social distancing.
Coronavirus Message from Mayor Brennan - March 13, 2020
Closure of Borough Facilities to the Public - March 15, 2020
Additional Closures and Actions - March 19, 2020
Letter to the Business Community - March 21, 2020
Small Business Resources - March 21, 2020
Help Our Business Community - March 21, 2020
A Message to the Community - March 30, 2020
Mayor's Covid-19 Message - April 6, 2020
Borough Park Closures and Additional Actions - April 7, 2020
In response to current Covid-19 restrictions, many places of worship have adjusted the ways in which they commune with parishioners and congregants. St. Peter Church, First Presbyterian Church, Trinity UMC, Grace Episcopal Church, High Place Church and Congregation M'kor Shalom have posted Easter and Passover season events on their individual Facebook page calendar and website. Many of these local churches and synagogues also offer weekly opportunities to gather, worship and comfort virtually through Facebook Live…
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On April 8th, New Jersey officials announced 3,088 new positive tests, for a total of 47,437. Additionally, 231 out of 375 long-term care facilities have now reported at least one COVID-19 case. Based on information from seven labs sending the state testing data, 94,525 tests have been performed and 41,550 (44%) have come back positive. According to hospital data, there are 7,026 hospital patients that are COVID-positive or under investigation. 1,617 patients are in critical…
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Governor Murphy signed new Executive Orders to further NJ's aggressive efforts to enforce social distancing. All non-essential construction across New Jersey will CEASE, indefinitely, effective 8:00 p.m. Friday. Exceptions include projects at our hospitals and schools, in our transportation and public utility sector, the building of affordable housing, other individual housing sites that can adhere to strict limits on the number of workers on-site, and other limited instances. We’re also aiming to mitigate overcrowding at…
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As you may know, the CDC and federal guidelines may begin to require us to wear face masks anytime we go outside. Check out this quick video update from Dr. Gary Sapienza, from Leading Smiles in Merchantville, as he reviews ways to control the spread of Covid-19 infections, protection in the absence of testing and some of the common face mask options and alternatives that are available to you. He urges all of us to…
Effective 8:00 p.m. this evening Mayor Brennan closed Merchantville's public parks and spaces consistent with Governor Murphy's Executive Order 118, which was issued today and is part of the continuing effort of the Borough to help flatten the curve and took additional Covid-19 actions. The mayor recognizes that the closure of all parks, particularly the multi-use path will upset many, but we stand united with the State and Camden County in trying to do everything…
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As of today, Camden County will have delivered more than 25,000 meals to seniors in need during the Covid-19 pandemic. Freeholder Jonathan Young thanked the dedicated public servants at the Division of Senior Services, Public Works, Parks, Building and Ops, and other county employees who are making these deliveries and coordinating the logistics of such a herculean effort." He continued, “Like critical workers across the county, many of these men and women continue to leave…
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Two new technologies being deployed in New Jersey as part of the fight against the coronavirus could boost those testing numbers enormously if they can perform. One comes out of a Rutgers University research center that uses a laboratory technique to make millions of copies of the COVID-19 nucleic acid. It can perform 10,000 tests a day using high-throughput, automated equipment. But instead of using nasal and throat swabs to obtain viral material, the analysis…
Mayor Brennan recorded a video message for the community from home last evening. He thanked residents and small businesses for their personal efforts to reduce the spread of coronavirus by "flattening the curve" through through social distancing and staying at home. He's been very encouraged to see the level of small business support. Mayor Brennan also announce a new initiative in town to pool resources to provide help to those in need. This initiative, intended…
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In this challenging time when Americans are under "shelter-in-place" IBM is offering free tools through weather.com, and an online dashboard, designed to help provide the latest details currently available from various official sources to people and businesses so they can access it easily on their computers or smartphones. Visit weather.com/coronavirus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) maintains an iOS app and is one of the foremost sources of accurate information during disease outbreaks…
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As we enter April the common refrain heard from some officials and others who sought to downplay the severity of coronavirus in February and early March - that it wasn't worth worrying about, because more people were likely to get sick or die from the flu than COVID-19 - may not stand up any longer. Lisa Maragakis, M.D., M.P.H., senior director of infection prevention at Johns Hopkins, explains how the flu and COVID-19 are similar…
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On April 5th, just one month after recording its first infection, New Jersey now has at least 34,124 known cases of the coronavirus, including 846 deaths, as state officials announced 4,331 new cases and 200 new fatalities from a global outbreak that’s expected to keep worsening in the coming days. The state is testing only symptomatic people and reporting an average of only 5,000 tests a day, which officials attribute to a lack of manpower…
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Three weeks after a Yonkers racing official became the first man from New Jersey to die of the coronavirus, horsemen continue to debate how widespread COVID-19 became in the harness racing industry. John Brennan, who was a fixture at Yonkers Raceway, became the first New Jersey resident to die from the coronavirus on March 10. Four members of a family with deep ties to harness racing then died over a six-day period in mid-March. State…
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Forbes cybersecurity journalist, Kate O'Flaherty, reviews options for people using remote video conferencing who are concerned about "zoom bombing" security, privacy until Zoom has had time to properly deal with its security and privacy issues. Apple’s FaceTime is a perfect, stable alternative to Zoom, as long as everyone who’s part of the meeting or chat has access to an Apple device. Signal, which is already loved by the security community, is a highly private and…
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Yesterday Dr. Deborah Birx emphasized that hotspots will see an increase in deaths over the next 6-7 days and the next two weeks will be crucial for the effort to flatten the curve and, unless it's essential to leave home during the next 14 days, Americans shouldn't. “This is the moment to not be going to the grocery store,” she said, “not going to the pharmacy, but doing everything you can to keep your family…