First Coronavirus Case Hit GA One Year Ago Tuesday

GEORGIA — In some ways, it may seem like the pandemic just began and in others, it continues to drag on. But Tuesday marks the one-year anniversary of Georgia's first confirmed case of the coronavirus. Now, there have been more than 800,000 cases in the Peach State.

The first two cases of the coronavirus were confirmed on March 2, 2020, in a father and son from Fulton County. One of the individuals had recently returned from Milan, Italy, and had symptoms a few days later. They continued to live in the same home under self-quarantine.

As of Monday, there have been 819,730 cases confirmed of the coronavirus in Georgia, and 15,148 deaths in the state. More than 56,000 people have been hospitalized over the past year, with 9,000 being admitted to the ICU, according to the Department of Public Health.

Earlier this year, Georgia saw its highest single-day total since the pandemic began when 10,393 new cases were confirmed on Jan. 8.

The first death in Georgia attributed to the coronavirus happened March 12, 2020, when a 67-year-old Cobb County man died. He had been hospitalized at WellStar Kennestone after testing positive for COVID-19 on March 7, 2020.

On Jan. 15, Georgia had a record number of deaths in a single day from the coronavirus, when 157 deaths were recorded.

When Georgia marked its first confirmed case in March 2020, there were fewer than 100,000 people globally who had been infected, with more than 3,200 people dead from the coronavirus, according to Johns Hopkins. Of that total, the United States only had 86 confirmed cases.

On Tuesday morning, Johns Hopkins reported more than 114 million cases globally, with 28 million being in the United States. Globally, 2.5 million people have died from the coronavirus, with nearly 515,000 in the United States.

In March 2020, Georgia Department of Public Health Commissioner Dr. Kathleen Toomey said the state's lab had what it needed to begin testing on its own later that week, which would cut the testing time from days to hours. Previously, only the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta had been able to administer the test.

Now, more than seven million Georgians have been tested for the coronavirus, the Department of Public Health said. Of those, nearly 800,000 have been positive for the coronavirus, with a rate of 11 percent positive.

On March 14, Gov. Brian Kemp first declared a public health state of emergency to deploy additional resources and give the department of public health authority to direct specific health care action against the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

As several school districts closed their doors for in-person learning, Kemp on March 16, 2020, ordered any remaining public school districts still open to close through the end of the month. Kemp later extended the closure of all public schools through the end of the school year, allowing virtual learning only.

Colleges followed suit and said students would finish the semester online after initially implementing a two-week suspension of in-person instruction. At that time, no college or university in Georgia had reported any cases of the coronavirus in students.

A couple of weeks later, Kemp issued a statewide shelter-in-place order from April 3-13, 2020, then extended it through the end of the month.

When May 2020 rolled around, Kemp allowed the state's shelter order to expire, which was another easing of restrictions in the same week that included restaurants resuming dine-in service and houses of worship preparing for in-person gatherings.

Restaurant owners were given the green light by Kemp to reopen dining rooms on April 27, 2020. Theaters, private social clubs and dine-in services at restaurants were also allowed to reopen if they followed social distancing and sanitation guidelines.

The governor did spell out a timeline for many types of businesses — from hair salons to restaurants and movie theaters — as well as churches as to when and how they could reopen to gatherings.

The businesses that reopened faced restrictions, including social distancing and regular sanitation. Businesses that allowed more than 10 people at a single location had to require at least a 6-foot distance between people at that time.

However, the timeline in Georgia came from opposition, including from President Donald Trump who said he did not agree with the reopening.

Kemp tweeted that he had discussed Georgia's plan to reopen businesses for limited operations with Trump, and he sidestepped the president's criticism.

"I appreciate his bold leadership and insight during these difficult times and the framework provided by the White House to safely move states forward," Kemp tweeted.

"Our next measured step is driven by data and guided by state public health officials," the governor wrote. "We will continue with this approach to protect the lives — and livelihoods — of all Georgians. Just like the thousands of businesses currently operating throughout Georgia, I am confident that business owners who decide to reopen will adhere to Minimum Basic Operations, which prioritize the health and well-being of employees and customers."

Beginning April 24, 2020, certain other businesses were allowed to reopen if following social distancing guidelines, including gyms, fitness centers, bowling alleys, body art studios, barbers, cosmologists, hair designers, nail care artists, estheticians and their schools, and massage therapists.

More specific guidelines for salon/shop owners and managers were released, including the use of the OSHA "Guidance on Preparing Workplaces for COVID-19" as a guide for reopening.

Kemp also extended the state's public health state of emergency through June 12 to continue enhanced testing across Georgia, ramp up contact tracing and maintain effective emergency response operations in every region.