By Caroline Lopez

The arrival of the coronavirus, COVID-19, to our communities took all of us by surprise. The first reported case of the infectious disease happened four months ago in Wuhan, China, before it spread in the country and took the lives of thousands.

As it was a quickly-growing epidemic, media and news outlets did not fail to report on the situation, and even after being warned about its emergence to the United States, the federal government claimed to have it under control. But as the current one and quarter million U.S. [at the time of writing] confirmed cases show, this was not the case.

The first confirmed case of coronavirus in the state of New Jersey was reported on March 4, specifically a male in his 30s who was hospitalized in Bergen County. This was the beginning of a real nightmare that was destined to change our lives.

I remember my exact reaction to this information. It had been a school day, I was simply watching the news before going to bed for school the next morning, when a reporter located in Bergen County had announced the news. Knowing how close this area was to my own, I was in complete shock.

Shortly after, the number of cases in the state began growing and someone who supposedly was diagnosed with it had visited my city, Passaic. This is when I personally started panicking. I knew a virus of that severity, especially a new one, was not to be ignored.

School was still in session, although talks concerning the coronavirus were given to students. Our gym period was replaced with an assembly by health care professionals who explained the disease, its symptoms, and how to prevent it. As a student who is constantly moving around the school, I would hear other students talk about the situation. Some agreed that it was scary, while others simply made fun of it. I wanted to think everything was under control, and if something were to happen that authorities would know how to respond, although I also knew that only so much can be done in outbreaks like these.

As the media became more concerned about the virus, suggestions on washing our hands frequently and keeping a distance with others were given. In Passaic High School, some of my teachers would also recommend the class to follow these guidelines. The outbreak in our area had still not been apparent by this time, which explains why most students still kept going to school. Chromebooks were also provided to students within this time period.

March 13th became our last day of school, as directed by Governor Murphy. No one knew it would be our last day until further notice, it was unexpected. As someone who looks forward to attending each and every single one of my classes to learn and interact with others, I felt sad. But I knew why it was done, and I agreed with it nonetheless.

Students and teachers had to convert to remote learning, using APEX, an application that tracks students’ work for each enrolled class and the time they spend on it. Many students struggled accessing this application due to being new to it, or technical difficulties. The school, however, took it to Google Classroom to give instructions on what to do in each situation.

I personally think the school administration acted quickly and responsibly to facilitate this new way of learning. They gave out directions and provided either emails or Remind codes to students for any help needed. Although I have not been a big fan of APEX and wish to go back to school, I comprehend that desperate times call for desperate measures.

The Mayor of Passaic, Hector Lora, has also been taking care of the situation. He has been keeping his people updated through the use of his public Facebook account. In fact, Lora has been promoting the guidelines requested by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

From personal observation it looks like the people of Passaic are taking this situation seriously and have been adhering to social distancing guidelines as well as staying home. If we all do our part, then we will be able to beat this virus and get back to work and school soon. So let’s all do our part!