Universal Music Group cleared its Santa Monica office Friday after an employee was diagnosed with coronavirus, Variety reported Friday night.
The COVID-19 case at Universal, which is headquartered at 2100 and 2220 Colorado Ave. in the Bergamot area, is the first confirmed case in Santa Monica.
A Santa Monica Apple Store employee contracted the virus while on leave and has not returned to the area since. Franklin Elementary, John Muir Elementary and Santa Monica High School may have been exposed to coronavirus but no cases have been confirmed at any Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District campus.
On Friday night, the city of Santa Monica issued a local emergency proclamation in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency.
The proclamation signed by City Manager Rick Cole will enhance the city’s ability to access federal and state dollars for COVID-19 response following President Donald Trump’s national emergency declaration Friday afternoon, where he announced $50 billion would be made available to assist state and local governments, said city spokesperson Constance Farrell.
“This proclamation is a necessary step in the city’s efforts to align with state Emergency Management, to access state and federal resources, and to partner with our neighboring cities for the public health,” City Manager Rick Cole said in a statement. “Santa Monica will continue to take bold and proactive actions to protect the health and safety of our community. We urge everyone to follow the directives of our health officials to stay calm, stay home if you’re sick and continue to practice appropriate social distancing.”
madeleine@smdp.com
The incubation period is up to 2 weeks. We don’t know if he contracted during his leave or prior. We know he was diagnosed during his leave on March 12th which is only 10 days from his last day worked on March 2nd. It’s possible he contracted the disease at the Apple Store then didn’t show symptoms until being tested on March 10th and confirmed on March 12th. Given the close quarters and crowded conditions at the Apple Store, we can’t ignore that infection on or before March 2nd may be more of a probability than a possibility.