Prince William Times 03/18/2020

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March 18, 2020 | Vol. 19, No. 12 | www.princewilliamtimes.com | 50¢ Covering Prince William County and surrounding communities, including Gainesville, Haymarket, Dumfries, Occoquan, Quantico and the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park.

COURTESY PHOTO

Some of the 375 cows that were sold and shipped to New York from Prince William County’s last dairy farm, Dutch Land Farm in Nokesville, on Wednesday, March 11. PHOTO BY DELIA ENGSTROM

To-go meals for kids: A steady stream of parents and kids arrived Monday morning at Forest Park High School, one of several sites where Prince William County schools are distributing breakfasts and lunches daily during the coronavirus closure. Children were asked to choose between Cinnamon Toast Crunch or Frosted Flakes cereals and ham and cheese or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Story on page 5.

County tries to cope with the coronavirus

Experts say most younger and healthier people likely won’t be severely impacted by the new virus, which is marked by symptoms such as fever, a dry cough and shortness of breath. See CORONAVIRUS, page 2

See DAIRY, page 4

Closed due to the coronavirus

Times Staff Writers

Schools were closed, thousands teleworked from home, restaurants such as Chick-Fil-A and Starbucks switched to drive-thru or take-out service only and store shelves were mostly stripped bare of produce, toilet paper, hand sanitizer and cleaning wipes. That was the scene around Prince William County early this week, as residents who spent the weekend stocking up at area grocery stores returned home to cope with a new normal: weeks of “social distancing” aimed at slowing the spread of the novel coronavirus 2019. Prince William became Virginia’s ground zero for COVID-19 back on Saturday, March 7, when a Marine stationed at Quantico fell ill, becom-

Coronavirus coverage online at www.princewilliamtimes.com ing Virginia’s first presumptive-positive case. Ten days later, Virginia counted 51 cases, including three in Prince William County: the Marine as well as a woman in her 60s who recently traveled to an affected area and a Manassas man in his 40s who recently returned from a trip to New York. Two of the victims, whom authorities have not identified, remained hospitalized as of late last week. INSIDE Classifieds...........................................16 Obituaries...........................................15 Opinion.................................................6

By Daniel Berti

Times Staff Writer

The last remaining dairy farm in Prince William County, Dutch Land Farm in Nokesville, has shut down its dairy operation. The farm will continue to produce crops like soy and corn. “It was a sad day,” said Lisa House, who owns the 600-acre farm with her husband, Dale House. The last of the farm’s 375 dairy cattle were shipped to a farm in upstate New York on Wednesday, March 11. House said the dairy farm was in operation in the county for more than 100 years. “We’re going to reassess what we’re doing,” House said. “We won’t be going back in the dairy business.” House said the primary reason for closing the farm’s dairy operation was a decline in milk prices over the last few years, a problem that has forced many dairy farms to close across the United States.

Schools close, states of emergency called, residents try to hunker down at home By Daniel Berti, Amanda Heincer and Jill Palermo

Prince William’s last dairy farm closes

PWC, Manassas, Manassas Park schools: until Tuesday, April 14 PWC facilities: until at least Tuesday, March 31 • Recreation centers • Senior Centers • Adult day care • Libraries • Historic sites • Bluebird bus tours Hylton Performing Arts Center: through Friday, April 10

Public Safety.........................................7 Puzzle Page .........................................9 Sports...................................................5

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