Ryan Nicol
A part-time employee who works at the BB&T Center has tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
That’s according to a release from the Florida Panthers. The BB&T Center in Broward County serves as the home stadium for the National Hockey League team.
“The Florida Department of Health has informed the Florida Panthers and BB&T Center that a part-time BB&T Center employee tested positive for COVID-19 on March 15,” the release reads.
“This employee’s most recent work day at BB&T Center was March 8.”
MercyMe, a Christian music band, performed at the BB&T Center on that date. The Panthers played a home game the day prior, on March 7, though the Miami Herald reports a Panthers spokesperson says the employee did not work during that game.
The Panthers statement says both the team and the employee are taking precautions since receiving word of the positive test.
“The employee is self-quarantined and is receiving medical care,” the statement reads.
“After being informed of this confirmed case, the Florida Panthers reached out to all staff who may have come in close contact with this employee during their shift. Those individuals have been asked to observe all precautions and report any existing symptoms to the Broward Department of Health.”
As of an update late Friday morning, Broward County had the most positive tests of any Florida county, with 124.
Gov. Ron DeSantis Friday also ordered Broward and Palm Beach counties to close all beaches. He also restricted restaurants with seating for more than 10 people to delivery only, banning in-person service.
DeSantis also mandated the closure of “all movie theaters, concert houses, auditoriums, playhouses, bowling alleys, arcades, gymnasiums [and] fitness studios” in the two counties.
Those restrictions will last at least until March 31. That’s the end date of recommendations from the federal government to avoid groups of more than 10 people.
The death rate for those who test positive for the virus has sat above 3%. However, those calculations do not include individuals who may have contracted the virus, but are asymptomatic and thus survive without incident. Including those individuals would lower the death rate, but it’s unclear how many such individuals there are worldwide.
Most who do show symptoms develop a fever or cough and may have trouble breathing, though they do recover. But older individuals and those with underlying health risks are susceptible to developing more severe symptoms.
