Rising COVID-19 cases prompted the City of Sandersville, the Washington County Chamber of Commerce, and Sandersville Main Street to postpone the First Friday Beach Bash scheduled for this Friday, August 6.
“We’ve been talking about different opportunities to do things once a month, we wanted to kick it off with the Beach Bash,” said Washington County Chamber of Commerce President Katie Moncus when discussing the event earlier this week.
At a Monday, August 2 Sandersville City Council meeting, Chamber of Commerce President Moncus stated that they would monitor the COVID-19 situation in the County, and make changes as needed.
News came Wednesday, August 4 that because of the increase in confirmed COVID-19 cases in Washington County, the event would need to be rescheduled for a later date.
In a social media post from Sandersville Main Street, they explained that safety is always first priority for the citizens.
“We thank you for your understanding,” reads the social media post.
According to the Georgia Department of Public Health’s daily status report for Tuesday, August 3, Washington County has seen 54 new confirmed COVID-19 cases within the last two weeks.
On August 3, alone, the Georgia Department of Public Health reported 23 new confirmed cases in Washington County.
In a recent news release from the North Central Health District, the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) is urged Georgians to get vaccinated as the number of new COVID-19 cases increases daily and the Delta variant spreads. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates the Delta variant accounts for 78 percent of new COVID cases in Georgia, making vaccination more urgent than ever. The Delta variant spreads more than twice as easily from one person to another, compared with earlier strains. The highest spread of cases and severe outcomes are happening in places with low vaccination rates, and virtually all hospitalizations and deaths continue to be among the unvaccinated.