Fredonia Mayor Doug Essek with his wife, Julie, from a Facebook post. Essek had contracted COVID-19 in December.

The highest elected official in the city of Jamestown has tested positive for COVID-19.

On Tuesday, Jamestown Mayor Eddie Sundquist announced the positive test.

“(Monday) morning I woke up with a fever and cough, and immediately scheduled a rapid test,” he said in a news release. “Unfortunately, COVID-19 was detected. I will remain in isolation until my doctor says it is safe for me to return to work in-person. In the meantime, I will continue to work remotely. My symptoms remain mild and I will work with the county health department to identify any individuals that may be deemed a contact.”

Sundquist said his staff and himself take COVID-19 seriously.

“My office and I have followed and will continue to follow CDC guidelines, use social distancing and wear masks or face coverings when social distancing cannot be maintained,” he said. “Please wear a mask and social distance. No one is immune from this disease and we must keep our community and loved ones safe.”

Sundquist wasn’t the only elected official to announce a positive COVID-19 test Tuesday. State Assemblyman Joseph Giglio, R-Gowanda, said in a news release that as a precautionary measure he took a COVID-19 test because he was experiencing mild flu-like symptoms.

“Regrettably, I learned that I tested positive for the virus, as did my wife, Ann,” he said. “I have been working remotely for the past several weeks and have not attended any public events. I am currently carrying out my legislative duties remotely via Zoom and telephone conference calls, but, out of an abundance of caution, I feel it is important to inform members of my community and my colleagues.”

Giglio said his wife and himself are following the advice of their doctors and are self-isolating at home.

“Since the beginning of the pandemic, I have taken social distancing and prevention protocols very seriously, and I encourage others to continue to do the same,” he said.

In December, state Sen. George Borrello, R-Sunset Bay, also announced he and his wife, Kelly, tested positive for COVID-19.

“As an elected official whose schedule often involves public interaction, I have made it a point to get tested for COVID-19 as a precautionary measure. Regrettably, following a test on Sunday, I learned that I tested positive for the virus, as did my wife, Kelly,” he said in December. “While, thankfully, we both feel well, we are following the recommendations of our doctors and will be self-isolating at home for 10 days. As we all know, COVID-19 is a very contagious and serious virus, especially because many carriers are asymptomatic.

Unfortunately, not all elected officials who have tested positive for COVID-19 had mild symptoms. In December, Fredonia Mayor Douglas Essek contracting COVID-19, which also led to him having double pneumonia and suffer a heart attack that placed him in the intensive care unit at UPMC Hamot in Erie, Pa.

According to an article in the OBSERVER in January, Essek called his experience positive due to the “marvelous experience” with health-care providers, the assistance of doctors and emergency medical technicians.

“Between the services I got, the thoughts and prayers, this really has been an amazing experience,” Essek said last month. “I’m just very lucky to be here and share this with you.”

Essek’s family also had COVID-19, but they were asymptomatic.

Also in the north county, Don Williams, Dunkirk Common Council First Ward councilman, and James Stoyle, Dunkirk Common Council Third Ward councilman, families also suffered from the coronavirus.

“My family suffered through (COVID-19) during Christmas,” Williams said. “Five of us in the family from ages 1 to 81, it’s here, it’s not that great to have and we’re all still getting over it. People can mask up and social distance and do whatever they need to and hopefully everyone stays safe.”

GOVERNMENT WORKERS IMPACTED BY COVID-19

Elected officials aren’t the only ones who have been infected by COVID-19, but government employees have also contracted the virus, which led to the death of a Dunkirk Public Works Department worker.

Mayor Wilfred Rosas said the pandemic has been an issue across all departments in city government.

“I can’t single out one department that is not dealing with issues due to COVID, whether that’s because we have someone that tested positive or whether we had someone who was contacted through contact tracing that they have to isolate,” Rosas said in an article printed last month in the OBSERVER. “Right now, we have changed certain policies on things that we normally do differently just to try to keep our staff members safe. And these are things that I’ve checked with other mayors on such as the mayors of Olean and Jamestown; these are mayors that have tweaked policies in their departments to makes sure they are trying to do everything they can to keep people safe.”

Dunkirk city government isn’t the only municipality to be impacted by COVID-19. In December, Sundquist announced during a Jamestown City Council work session that there had been a “spike” in the number of city workers who had tested positive for COVID-19.

In October, there was a COVID-19 outbreak reported among city of Jamestown Fire Department employees. There was a high of eight active cases at one point of the 55-member fire department.

4 NEW VIRUS DEATHS REPORTED

The Chautauqua County Department of Health on Tuesday reported 42 new cases of COVID-19 along with four new virus-related deaths.

To date there have been 6,785 confirmed cases within the county and 111 COVID-related fatalities.

According to county data, four people between the ages of 40 and 49 have died with the virus; three between the ages of 50 and 59; eight between 60 and 69; 26 between 70 and 79; 41 between 80 and 89; and 28 over the age of 90. The county said it was awaiting the date of birth for one of the deaths.

Of the new cases recorded Tuesday, for information collected Monday, six come from the Dunkirk zip code, five in Fredonia, 14 in Jamestown and five in Gerry.

There is currently 364 active cases, a drop of 37 from the previous day, as well as 39 people with the virus in the hospital, an increase of four.

In Cattaraugus County, 15 new COVID cases were reported Monday evening, bringing the total to 3,780. There is currently 380 active cases along with 3,320 recoveries, 39 hospitalizations, 78 deaths and a seven-day positivity rate of 4%.