Wednesday saw the lowest COVID positivity rate in months for Orange Co.; plus updates on testing, evictions and more

The Eviction Diversion Program application portal will open on Tuesday, August 25, 2020, at 9 a.m.

From the Orange County Newsroom

COVID-19 NUMBERS

As reported at the news brief this afternoon, Orange County had an increase of 197 coronavirus cases from Wednesday. 359 residents have died of COVID-19 since March of this year.

Orange County’s overall positivity rate is 11.6 percent. However, the positivity rate reported Thursday (for Wednesday) was 5.23 percent, which is the lowest daily rate in nearly two months.

TESTING

Orange County Health Services Department will be at Barnett Park next week, August 25 through 28, to provide free COVID-19 testing to the surrounding community. The test site will be open from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Residents who register will receive free face masks and hand sanitizer.

To schedule an appointment, visit ocfl.net/BarnettPark.

For more information on this site and other testing sites in Orange County, visit www.ocfl.net/COVID19.

COVID-19 EVICTION DIVERSION PROGRAM

Information about Orange County’s COVID-19 Eviction Diversion Program is now available online at ocfl.net/EvictionDiversion.

The application portal will open on Tuesday, August 25, 2020, at 9 a.m. The program has a capacity of $20 million, which will assist in approximately 5,000 to 8,000 evictions in Orange County.

To qualify for the program, both the landlord and tenant must agree to participate in the program and meet eligibility criteria. Any party interested in the program is urged to review and prepare all program documents, as well as speak to your landlord, or your tenant prior to applying.

For more information and a full list of eligibility criteria, please visit ocfl.net/EvictionDiversion.

WEATHER IN THE TROPICS

Orange County’s Office of Emergency Management continues to monitor weather in the Tropics, as Tropical Depression 13 is expected to develop into Tropical Storm Laura later today.

Forecasters are predicting that the storm will develop into a category one hurricane by the time it reaches the Bahamas late Sunday or early Monday.

Orange County urges all residents and guests to be Hurricane Ready. Helpful tips, County resources and videos on storm preparedness and recovery can be found at ocfl.net/Storm, or Ready.gov.