‘SLOW THE SPREAD’ All Americans summoned in COVID-19 response
Emerson • Hillsdale • Montvale • Park Ridge • River Vale • Township of Washington • Westwood • Woodcliff Lake VOLUME 24 ISSUE 1
OVERDUE HONORS
PA S C AC K VA L L E Y ’ S BEST H O M E TO W N N E W S PA P E R
MARCH 23, 2020
BERGEN COUNTY
COUNTY EXECUTIVE ORDERS NEAR-TOTAL SHUTDOWN — THEN BACKTRACKS BY TOM CLANCEY OF PASCACK PRESS
Former River Vale Police Chief, 92, presented World War II-era medals. SEE PAGE 8
TOWNSHIP OF WASHINGTON
IN APPEAL, CALAMARI URGES KINDNESS
Chief also vows officers will render aid but keep distance BY JOHN SNYDER OF PASCACK PRESS
Mayor Peter Calamari said “kindness and common sense will go a long way” as the town weathers the COVID-19 emergency. He added in part, “Thereʼs nothing like a good old-fashioned phone call” for residents who need to conduct business at the now closed-to-the-public municipal center. He said he hoped people also had access to email and a scanner for submitting documents. Calamari was joined by Police Chief Richard Skinner, Council President Stacey DeMarco-Feeney, and Office of Emergency Management Coordinator Sgt. Rio Fasciano at the studio of WCTVNJ on Saturday, March 14, shooting an 11-minute public service announcement reinforcing safety messages and updating
See TOWNSHIP on page 184
President Donald Trump is optimistic a vaccine for the novel Coronavirus COVID-19 may soon be forthcoming, but his White House Coronavirus response coordinator says ‘the only thing we have right now is the amazing ingenuity and compassion of the American people.’ confirmed COVID-19 cases in all 50 states. BY TOM CLANCEY On Monday, March 16, Trump and the Centers OF PASCACK PRESS for Disease Control announced 15 days to slow the WASHINGTON, D.C.—America is at war against the spread by practicing social distancing, listening to novel Coronavirus COVID-19, President Donald state and local authorities, and staying home if sick, or if someone in a household has tested positive or Trump said last week. The Federal Emergency Management Agency is displaying symptoms. is at a level-one response nationwide, with Continued on page 20
Here’s how to social distance in the age of Coronavirus PASCACK VALLEY—With no vaccine or a therapeutic treatment available for novel Coronavirus COVID-19—now a worldwide pandemic with cases in all 50 states—the Centers for Disease Control says the best way to prevent illness is to avoid being exposed to this virus. The virus is thought to spread mainly from person-to-person, between people who are in close contact with one another (within about 6 feet), through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be
inhaled into the lungs, C.D.C. says. Put distance between yourself and other people if COVID-19 is spreading in your community, the C.D.C. says. This is especially important for people who are at higher risk of getting very sick, especially older adults, or those with heart disease, diabetes, or lung disease, it says. In recent days, United States officials said there is emerging concern for people in the Millennial generation, with reports from France and
Continued on page 19
An executive order calling for the shut down of all non-essential commerce—a measure the County Executive claimed was necessary to save lives and slow the spread of the novel Coronavirus COVID-19— was announced for Tuesday, March 17, then delayed until Saturday, March 21, then rescinded at the request of Gov. Phil Murphy. Bergen County Executive James Tedesco read the order at a Monday, March 16 press conference, saying no more than four people—other than family members— should congregate in public and “no worldly employment or business shall be performed or practiced by any person or entity within the County of Bergen until further notice except as expressly permitted…” The viral pandemic may spread to a majority of the population, officials warn, worrying a crush of patients may overwhelm hospitals already dealing with a shortage of intensive care units and ventilators. Restrictions on civil society are aimed at slowing the spread of the virus, officials have said. But Tedescoʼs order caused confusion and was not coordinated with Gov. Phil Murphy or the stateʼs Attorney General.
See TEDESCO on page 164
LESSON IMPRINTED
B ck in time...
The River Vale Police Department demonstrated the science of fingerprints at Holdrum Middle School March 7. SEE PAGE 11
In 1924, Girl Scouting came to Hillsdale. In those early years, the community was the site of some Girl Scouting ‘firsts.’ SEE PAGE 4