- Miami Mayor Francis Suarez announced he had tested positive for coronavirus on Friday, the Miami Herald reported.
- Suarez had gone into self-quarantine on Thursday after meeting with a delegation from Brazil earlier this week that included Jair Bolsonaro and his spokesman. The spokesman has reportedly tested positive for coronvirus.
- Suarez said that the city had planned for such a scenario but was “concerned for people who have had some measure of contact with me.”
- Miami declared a state of emergency on Thursday to increase the city’s ability to combat and prevent the coronavirus.
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Miami mayor Francis Suarez announced he has tested positive for the coronavirus, after he met with Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro and his delegation in Miami earlier this week.
In a Friday video to supporters that appeared to be taken from isolation, Suarez confirmed the positive result for COVID-19, the disease cause by the coronavirus.
My message to our residents in light of the news that I have tested positive for COVID-19. pic.twitter.com/gW9IziifQm
— Mayor Francis Suarez (@FrancisSuarez) March 13, 2020
"I feel completely healthy and strong," Suarez said in the video. "However, I am doing the resopnsible thing by working with the county's health department to take every precuation to ensure that not only my family's healthy, but everyone I have come into contact with is healthy with as well."
Suarez asked anyone who had shaken hands with him, or been in proximity to him if he coughed or sneezed since Monday, to self-isolate as a precaution. These individuals did not need to be tested, Suarez said. People who had no such contact with him did not need to isolate, he said.
After the Brazilian delegation's visit to Florida, Bolsonaro's spokesman Fabio Wajngarten, tested positive for the coronavirus, according to Brazilian media and CNN. On Friday, Bolsonaro said he has tested negative for the virus.
Suarez is not the first Florida politician impacted by the visit. Sen. Rick Scott (R), who also met with the delegation on Monday, announced he was voluntarily entering self-quarantine but had not been tested for the coronavirus.
Suarez told the Miami Herald in an interview on Friday that he felt healthy, but he was "concerned for people who have had some measure of contact with me."
Miami declared a state of emergency on Thursday to expedite the city's response to the coronavirus threat.
That same day, Suarez told citizens hat he was entering self-quarantine as a precaution after meeting with Bolsonaro's delegation.
Here is my statement regarding my decision to self-quarantine: pic.twitter.com/zKAmOXIB2Q
— Mayor Francis Suarez (@MiamiMayor) March 12, 2020
During Bolsonaro's visit to Miami on Monday and Tuesday, Suarez said he was in the same room as the president and his infected staff member.
Suarez said that he did not believe that he had personal contact with the infected individual, and was not experiecing symptoms. However, he chose to enter self-quarantine "out of an abundance of caution."
"I feel healthy, strong, and more than capable of doing my job as mayor," Suarez said on Thursday.
On Friday, Suarez urged anyone who had physical contact twith him to self-quarantine and said he could continue to work while recovering.
"If we did not shake hands or you did not come into contact with me if I coughed or sneezed, there is no action you need to take whatsoever," he said. "If we did, however, touch or shake hands, or if I sneezed or coughed near you since Monday, it is recommended that you self-isolate for 14 days, but you do not need to get tested. After speaking with medical personnel, I will continue to follow Department of Health protocol and remain isolated while I lead our government remotely.