SAN ANTONIO – San Antonio Police Department uniformed personnel, including officers, are being asked to “prepare a plan for isolation room” in their homes and to start practicing social distancing immediately if they feel they have been exposed to illness, according to an order issued this week by SAPD Chief William McManus.
The order, which was provided to the KSAT 12 Defenders by a source on Wednesday, states that police are “seeing patients become symptomatic 5-7 days after contracting COVID-19.”
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SAPD: Officer infected with COVID-19 worked more than 4 days after possible exposure to virus
At least two SAPD officers have tested positive for COVID-19, according to Metro Health. In the first case, SAPD told KSAT that the officer worked for more than four days after the officer was potentially exposed. In mid-March, the officer came into contact with a family member who may have also contracted the virus, sources told KSAT.
The second officer to test positive for COVID-19 is a detective who has been with the department for 15 years. The cases do not appear to be related, according to Metro Health.
2nd SAPD officer tests positive for coronavirus, city officials say
Bexar County has reported a total of 207 positive cases since the start of the coronavirus’ spread across the country.
Officers are being given the option of isolating at home or at a department provided facility where they will not be allowed to leave their room unless it’s an emergency situation.
Read the orders below:
COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the new virus, stands for coronavirus disease 2019. The disease first appeared in late 2019 in Wuhan, China, but spread around the world in early 2020, causing the World Health Organization to declare a pandemic in March.
MORE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE FROM KSAT: