Health officials praised some efforts and encouraged strengthening others in the fight to limit COVID-19 in Limestone County, with one doctor calling for residents to “keep their antennas up” and be prepared for the current situation to get worse before it gets better.

“The storm is still headed this way, and we have to not lose our sense of preparedness and become complacent and overconfident,” Dr. Nauman Qureshi said during a press conference Thursday afternoon.

Limestone County EMA hosted the conference so local leaders and medical professionals could update the public on measures being taken in Limestone County to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Those measures have included closing government buildings to the public and promoting social distancing and good hygiene practices.

In the medical community, it has meant following state guidelines against visitors at assisted living facilities or nursing homes, setting up a fever and flu clinic in Athens, closing certain access points at the hospital and making sure that if this is the lull before the storm, Limestone County can handle what could be coming next.

“These are uncharted territories and they have improvised and acted quickly and come up with some very practical plans to foresee what could be coming down the pipeline,” Qureshi said.

Athens-Limestone Hospital administrator David Pryor said it was “amazing what the team at the hospital” has accomplished in the days since cases were confirmed in the state. The drive-thru clinic at Waddell Family Medicine sees about 50 patients a day, he said, with around 300 tests being performed so far.

Daily calls allow ALH, which is part of the Huntsville Hospital system, to work with other facilities to make sure equipment can be where it’s needed most. Dr. Paul Fry, chief of staff at ALH, said they were fortunate not to have anyone with COVID-19 at the hospital at this time, but they had spent “multiple hours going through every worst case scenario.”

Some hospitals have feared not having enough ventilators for patients with breathing difficulties. Fry said ALH had enough, and if it came down to it, they were prepared to put two patients on one ventilator. They were also prepared for the possibility of making a section of the hospital strictly for COVID-19 patients and even for dividing the intensive care unit so patients with the disease could be treated away from those without.

“God willing, we’re over-prepared and won’t have to put any of these plans into place,” he said.

Pryor said it was “incredible” how the community had responded to the threat. He encouraged people continue social distancing, washing their hands and seeking information from credible sources. Residents can call 256-262-6188 for an ALH hotline that can provide general information about COVID-19 and symptoms of the disease.

“In Limestone County, what I’m seeing is there has not been a panic,” Qureshi said. “Everything is proceeding calmly. That is very important.”

Qureshi reminded residents that due to limited resources, only those with symptoms will be tested for COVID-19. Anyone who does get tested should assume they have the disease and quarantine accordingly until they hear otherwise, he said. If severe symptoms develop, the patient should seek immediate medical care. Those symptoms include shortness of breath, chest pain, turning blue and starting to act confused, and they generally appear in older citizens or those with other medical problems, he said.

“Those are the warning signs, and those are the people who need to be taken to the emergency room,” Qureshi said.