Porter Will Not Require Masks In Putnam

Putnam County Mayor Randy Porter will encourage but not require the wearing of masks by local residents.

“I feel like one of my top responsibilities as County Mayor is to help ensure our citizens stay safe and healthy,” Porter said in a statement Monday night. “As I have since the beginning of this pandemic, I’m recommending the citizens of Putnam County follow CDC guidelines regarding not only the wearing of masks but also washing hands frequently and practicing social distancing.”

Governor Bill Lee gave county mayors the ability to require masks be worn Friday. Porter said he evaluated the county’s death rate, the availability of space at Cookeville Regional and the number of active cases in the county. Porter said the health department reports 256 active cases currently in Putnam County.

“Our coronavirus numbers continue to ebb and flow, and it’s something I monitor daily with our county health department,” Porter said. “Overall, while we’d rather not see any cases here at home, our number of active cases remains a low percentage of our total county population.”

Porter said right now each individual needs to make the choice.

“We all hope that in the exercise of your personal liberties and your freedom to choose your own actions that you make the individual decision to stay safe and to protect those around
you,” Porter said. “If we all work together and make good choices, we can prevail over this challenge.”