Tuscaloosa mayor Walt Maddox: 'Time will tell' if Alabama football CFP championship celebration causes COVID spike
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As coronavirus-positive inpatients at DCH Health System dipped below 170 this week, data shows a slight downward trend in the number needing treatment in Tuscaloosa.
But Monday nightâs mass gathering on The Strip in celebration of the University of Alabamaâs national championship win over Ohio State might send those numbers back upward, city officials said.
Right now, itâs just too soon to know.
âCertainly,â said Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox, âonly time will tell.â
On Monday, a total of 165 inpatients with COVID-19 were listed across the DCH Health Systemâs three local hospitals.
Of those, 44 were in need of intensive care unit treatment, with 20 requiring ventilators.
This is an increase over the 40 in ICU and 15 on ventilators one week ago, but an overall decrease from the 175 inpatients listed at DCH on Jan. 4.
The early January climb could be linked to holiday and Christmas celebrations, as 133 total cases were reported at DCH on Dec. 22, with 31 of those in ICU and nine on ventilators.
But in the past seven days, the number of new inpatients at the local health system has been on a decline, dropping steadily from the 27 new inpatients recorded on Jan. 6 to the 19 documented on Monday.
That amounts to a total of 157 new inpatients with COVID-19 symptoms in the past seven days with 170 coronavirus patients discharged.
But the lingering question is whether the thousands upon thousands of people that descended on The Strip as the College Football Playoff National Championship Game came to a close will lead to added strain on the local healthcare system, Maddox said.
He praised the efforts of local police, the University of Alabama and Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board in responding to the crowds that took over The Strip for less than two hours Monday night.
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According to a timeline presented by Maddox, the streets began to clog with students and revelers about 10:40 p.m.
By 11:30 p.m. local time, Tuscaloosa Police Chief Brent Blankley and the police began using pepper spray in moderate amounts to begin the dispersal of the crowds as fights and property damage began to break out and occur.
By 12:02 a.m. local time, University Boulevard within this area of Tuscaloosa was cleared, Maddox said.
âit certainly was a very difficult situation,â Maddox said, âbut I was really, really proud of TPD and our partners in law enforcement.â
A total of 14 people were arrested on 18 charges, but no large authoritative effort was made to control the crowds through force. Doing so, the mayor said, wouldâve required about 500 police officers in riot gear that, considering the reach of the celebratory photos across the national media, couldâve reflected poorly on the city.
âWe donât have the logistics to support that ⊠and I donât think thatâs the imagery we want to portray,â the mayor said. âAt the end of the day, I feel like this community did everything it could to protect itself and protect others.â
He also highlighted the cityâs legal limitations in controlling such situations.
For example, in response to blanket questions of why bars or businesses werenât shuttered in this area of town, Maddox said the city is legally unable to do that. Should particular business or alcohol license holders be regulated, doing so would apply to all of those licensees citywide.
If bars and restaurants had been targeted, about 300 businesses wouldâve been forced to close, Maddox said.
Likewise, curfews or other restrictions on movement canât be limited to one particular part of town. Doing so would mean police would have to enforce those rules citywide, which is something the Tuscaloosa Police Departmentâs limited staffing â about 30% of the force is out for COVID-19 or coronavirus-related reasons, he said â is unable to perform adequately.
Ultimately, the responsibility, Maddox said, lay with those who chose to participate in such a large gathering in the midst of a global pandemic.
And, the mayor said, when he was college-aged, he may have done the same thing.
âWe were all 18 to 22 at one time,â Maddox said. âItâs easy to throw stones but, at the same time, I think weâve all been there before.â
Reach Jason Morton at jason.morton@tuscaloosanews.com.