CORONAVIRUS IN GEORGIA: What’s happening today - March 12, 2020

ATLANTA — Here’s a round-up of what’s happening so far today, March 12: (Click here for the previous day)

• Buford City Schools will close on Monday and will assess when to reopen.
• Forsyth County Schools to hold Online Learning Days for the week of March 16-20.
• Henry County Schools will close for at least 2 weeks starting Monday.
• Barrow County Schools will be closed for two weeks starting on Monday.
• Pike County Schools will be closed on Friday.
• Cherokee County Schools will be closed March 16 through March 27. They will use Digital Learning Days during the closure to continue teaching and learning.
• Gwinnett County will have digital learning days from March 16-20.
• Coweta County Schools will close on Friday and continue through March 27.
• Gainesville City School System will be closed March 16-20.
• Hall County Schools will close Monday for 1 week.
• Paulding County will close Monday until further notice.
• Carroll County will close on Monday for at least 2 weeks.
• Clayton County Schools to close Monday until further notice.
• Douglas County Schools to close Monday for 2 weeks.
• Fayette County Schools will be closed on Friday.
• DeKalb County Schools will close Monday until further notice.
• Fulton County Schools cancels classes until further notice due to coronavirus concerns.
• Marietta City Schools closing for at least 2 weeks starting Monday.
• City of Decatur schools to close Friday indefinitely.
• Rome City Schools are closed Friday and Monday.
• APS will close on Monday for at least two weeks, possibly longer.

• All University System of Georgia institutions will temporarily suspend instruction for two weeks. Students who are currently on spring break are strongly encouraged not to return to campus.
• Cobb County Schools will be closed until further notice starting on Monday.
• State confirms first coronavirus-related death in Georgia
• 31 confirmed and presumed cases of COVID-19 in Georgia.
• Gov. Kemp is urging people to have a plan to take care of their elderly loved ones.
• Kemp issuing a call to action for educators, schools and day cares to consider closing as early as tomorrow. He said this is not a mandate.
• Kemp: suspending all non-essential travel and instituting teleworking for all state workers that can work from home.
• Kemp announces creation of new committees to handle coronavirus outbreak.
• Public Health Commissioner Dr. Kathleen Toomey: State can do about 50 tests a day for the virus, by next week will be able to do 100 tests a day.
• Toomey: If you have a suspicion you may have coronavirus, she urges people to call ahead if they need to see their doctor.
• Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms: City of Atlanta will test teleworking operations on Friday and make a decision on whether to have city workers work from home.
• Kemp: There is no need for people to panic. Promises to be truthful with people.
• Toomey: The more we test, the more we’ll understand this virus. Says private labs are now able to test for the virus.
• Toomey: Looking at creating testing sites statewide, some could be set up as early as Monday.
• Toomey: Working on a website where coronavirus test results can be entered and map out where the cases are. Real-time number of cases.
• Toomey: State is notifying members of a Bartow County church where they believe coronavirus was spread.
• Toomey: We’ll see many more cases of coronavirus. Currently testing the severely ill.
• Bottoms: City is deferring to the school district about closing schools and procedures to take care of those students who need free and reduced lunches.
• Clark Atlanta, Morehouse, Spelman to move to online classes after extended spring break
• Second plane of quarantined cruise ship passengers arrived at Dobbins Air Reserve overnight. The passengers will be monitored for two weeks.

[CORONAVIRUS: List of event cancellations in north Georgia]

SPORTING EVENTS

• NCAA has canceled remaining winter and spring championships.

• NASCAR announces no fans at this weekend’s race in Atlanta
• Atlanta United and MLS are suspending games over coronavirus concerns
• The NBA announced late Wednesday that it has suspended the season. A Utah Jazz player tested positive for the coronavirus.
• NCAA will not allow fans to attend March Madness games. Conference tournaments also created that policy, including for Georgia basketball playing in SEC Tournament.

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