‘I want everybody to take it seriously.’ Merced County Sheriff clarifies COVID-19 stance
On the cusp of the Fourth of July weekend, Merced County Sheriff Vern Warnke in a video urged residents to take the highly contagious coronavirus seriously.
The wary message came nearly two months after the sheriff released an initial statement on Facebook about his decision to tell the state his office will not be enforcing any COVID-19-related “violations.”
Warnke’s Thursday video reiterated the stance, but took a more forceful position on residents practicing safety measures like wearing a mask and social distancing while the virus spreads exponentially locally, statewide and nationally.
“When you heard me talk about the way my stance was, it did not mean that this disease is not serious. It is very serious,” Warnke said in the video. “I’m not an advocate for any law enforcement personnel to enforce the face masks, I’m just not,” he later added. “That’s why I’m counting on you to do your part and to do the right thing every time you leave your house.
“Remember that there’s a lot of people that are counting on it.”
The sheriff’s message came one day after Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered Merced and 18 other counties to shut down bars and indoor operations for restaurants, movie theaters, bowling allies, zoos, museums and more.
Each of the counties had been placed on a watch list due to their COVID-19 statistics rising in number and severity. The counties now have three weeks to bring infections back down. If cases persist, the state may step in again with a further round of restrictions.
As of Wednesday evening, Merced County Public Health reported 610 active infections and 24 active hospitalizations.
At the time of the sheriff recording his message, he noted that just 10% of hospital capacity was available due to the increasing number of infections severe enough to mandate hospitalization. Residents are near death and on ventilators, he said.
Warnke said that as the county coroner, he handles and investigates nearly every local death. He highlighted two recent deaths directly related to COVID-19 complications within the past seven days: One, a 29-year-old man who hemorrhaged to death, and another man in his early 40s who had a sudden onset of symptoms and died quickly of a stroke.
“It’s bad, and I want everybody to take it seriously,” Warnke said. “Wear your masks, do your social distancing, wash your hands.”
Warnke said recent conversations with Merced County Public Health Director Rebecca Nanyonjo-Kemp stressed the fact that wearing a face mask is the biggest preventative medicine available against the pandemic’s persistent spread, along with social distancing. The governor recently mandated mask wearing in public spaces, with very few exceptions.
The sheriff said he has his own mask in his work truck, personal truck and at home in case anybody unexpected drops by. “I don’t want to catch this disease and neither should you,” he said.
The Sheriff’s Office is taking preventative steps against the virus by preemptively shutting down area parks to deter large gatherings and household mixing during the holiday weekend.
Lake Yosemite in Merced, Henderson Park in Snelling and Hagaman Park in Livingston will close to the public Friday through Sunday.
“They will all be closed,” Warnke said. “Deputies will be on the scene to enforce those closures.”
Warnke encouraged Merced County to have joyous, but safe, Independence Day celebrations at home.
“Please take responsibility for your actions,” he said. “The government shouldn’t be making anybody be responsible for your health, but it’s gonna get to the point where so many people are getting deadly sick and dying that something is going to have to be done.”
This story was originally published July 2, 2020 at 1:37 PM.
