Riverside County activates emergency operations center for coronavirus

Riverside County has activated its department operations center as it continues to ramp up the response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

The Riverside University Health System-Public Health and Riverside County Emergency Management Department are jointly operating the operations center.

“The establishment of the DOC will allow us to better coordinate our response to the spread of COVID-19 and provide the public with the latest and most accurate information about what we are doing to prepare and the illness itself,” said Kim Saruwatari, director of Public Health.

County officials confirmed that there are currently no coronavirus cases in the county.

One county resident who was a passenger on the Diamond Princess cruise ship near Japan tested positive for the virus. They have not returned to the county and are being treated in Northern California, according to officials.

Federal officials announced Wednesday afternoon that a medical screener at Los Angeles International Airport has tested positive for coronavirus

Riverside County has established a coronavirus site to provide the community with the latest news and information about the illness. Visit www.rivcoph.org.

Earlier today, state officials confirmed the first coronavirus death in California. A Placer County resident who was on the February trip died Wednesday in the first death from the COVID-19 virus in California. The resident was a passenger on a Grand Princess cruise ship that traveled from San Francisco to Mexico in February.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now investigating a “small cluster” of patients with the new coronavirus in Northern California who were passengers on that Feb. trip.

The city and county of Los Angeles declared states of emergency on Wednesday after six new cases of the disease were confirmed in the county.

Stay with News Channel 3 for updates.