Dear Suffield Community & Town Employees,
As confirmed cases of COVID-19 have made their way into our community, it has been our desire to apprise residents quickly. In our last update, we stated, “the Town will not report on each confirmed case going forward.” We felt the need to make this statement because we anticipate numbers to continue to climb at an accelerated pace. Additionally, it has been the Town’s policy to report only cases verified by the Connecticut Department of Public Health (CTDPH) in coordination with their regional representative, the North Central District Health Department (NCDHD). Given the number of cases throughout the state, that reporting process has slowed. With confirmations increasing and reporting slowed, coupled with the frustration of reconciling figures with external sources, we want to emphasize this important message to residents:
Specific numbers – while so very important to each individual they represent – are secondary to reporting the fact that the virus is highly contagious and widely disseminating in our town. Please continue to do what is needed to slow the rate at which people become exposed and ill.
We have added confirmed Suffield numbers as the first bullet point item within the Town Updates section on the Emergency Alert page. Residents can access these figures directly via the CTDPH website under TEST DATA. Additionally, the Department of Geography at UCONN created a helpful map of the state with confirmed COVID-19 cases by town which is also included on the website. As of April 5, 2020, CTDPH reports Suffield with 20 confirmed cases.