Dubbo Regional Council says it's continuing to provide essential services, but there may be scaling back as the coronavirus spreads.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
On Tuesday, the Western NSW Local Health District said there were no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Dubbo. A spokesperson stated testing had been undertaken but none had come back positive.
Council's manager corporate image and communications Andrew Parsons said the pandemic was a "national emergency" but residents in the Dubbo local government area could be assured that council was continuing its essential services.
"There is rubbish being collected, the water treatment and sewage treatment facilities are functioning, services are being provided, council's public experience centres are open," Mr Parsons said.
"We'd like to say it's business at normal but it's not business as normal because we're not working in normal times or conditions."
ALSO MAKING NEWS:
However, like other businesses, Mr Parsons said if the pandemic starts to impact the region, council would have to look at how it did business, which could include scaling back services.
"We need to set the expectation early that we're not immune to this. No one is immune to this," he said.
"It's not like a bushfire, we can't see it on the horizon, it's not like a flood where we can see the waters rising. This is an invisible thing that does affect all sections of the community. As an organisation staffed by human beings, staffed by people who live in this community, we may also be affected."
For now, the tourism facilities like The Old Dubbo Gaol, Wellington Caves and pools, remain open.
Mr Parsons has acknowledged the impact the virus is having, thanks to the cancelling of events and businesses having to change their model of working.
"We have been through, certainly in this area, a very long and arduous drought. We've been through any number of challenges. This is another challenge that's been thrown at us," he said.
"At the moment, we still have our facilities open and we still warmly welcome business to be carried out and conducted in our region."
In the coming days, information and advice would be provided to businesses to assist them through the trying time, Mr Parsons said.
The manager said there had been no indication of rate cuts in the LGA.
Mr Parsons urged people to approach the situation with a "calm head and a respectful head".
He said the federal and state governments were leading the situation and were the best for up-to-date information but council would also be issuing regular updates as more information came to light.
We have removed our paywall from our stories about the coronavirus. This is a rapidly changing situation and we to make sure our readers are as informed as possible. If you would like to support our journalists you can subscribe here.