Salvation Army reports 3 COVID-19 cases among homeless at Berberian Center shelter
The Salvation Army is reporting three COVID-19 cases among its homeless shelter clients at its Berberian Center in Modesto.
Maj. Harold Laubach Jr. said Wednesday that Stanislaus County public health notified The Salvation Army on Saturday of the first two cases, and the third on Monday. He said all three cases involve homeless men, and the county has placed them in motel rooms while they recover.
He said he believes Berberian Center staff requested the men get tested at Doctors Medical Center because they had symptoms indicating they could have COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus. Laubach said the first two men have jobs so it’s not clear where they were exposed.
Laubach said public health had the Berberian Center’s roughly 120 to 130 homeless men and women and staff members tested Tuesday evening, and the results should be back in several days.
The Salvation Army also operates the county’s low-barrier shelter at the Berberian Center. But Laubach said there are no confirmed COVID-19 cases among those shelter clients, and the two shelters are physically separate.
The Modesto Gospel Mission in late June reported an outbreak among its homeless guests, with nine cases at its men’s shelter. These were the mission’s first COVID-19 cases, and county Office of Emergency Services spokesman Raj Singh has said he believed that was the first outbreak among homeless people in the county.
Gospel Mission Executive Director Jason Conway said Wednesday the COVID-19 cases now stand at 40, with all of them among male homeless clients and the male staff members who work with them. The mission keeps its homeless men in one building and its homeless women and women with children in another. Male staff work with the men and female staff work with the women and children.
Conway said 20 of the 40 have recovered, and the remaining 20 have mild to moderate symptoms. The mission’s clients and staff are being tested weekly until there are two consecutive tests with no positive results. He said last week was the first time the tests came back with no positive results. He is awaiting the results of this week’s tests.
Requiring face masks
The Gospel Mission and Berberian Center are requiring masks and have been taking other measures, including physical distancing and frequent cleaning and disinfecting, to limit the spread of the disease.
Neither is accepting new clients until it is safe and both are asking clients to remain on campus unless they have a legitimate reason to leave, such as a medical appointment or a job.
“We are committed to the safety and well-being of all guests, staff, and volunteers and are prepared for this unfortunate eventuality,” Laubach wrote in an email. “... Since the beginning of the U.S. outbreak, we have worked with local, state, and federal partners to ensure our operational protocols help mitigate the spread of the virus.”
Laubach and Conway said the county at least several weeks ago removed shelter clients who were 65 and older and-or medically at risk and placed them at the Modesto Hotel.
The county is leasing the hotel to provide shelter for those without a safe place to stay and who are vulnerable to the effects of COVID-19 because of their age and-or health. The county also has other motel rooms to place people.
