CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Organizers of the annual West Virginia Public Safety Expo have canceled the event for this year because of the coronavirus.
Kanawha County Emergency Management Coordinator C.W. Sigman said they couldn’t put as many as 700 first responders from several states in danger.
“We’ve been asking everybody to keep their social distances, we’ve canceled ball games, we’ve canceled schools. We cannot have everybody gather together,” Sigman said.
The expo, in its 13th year, was scheduled from May 6-8 with many of the larger gatherings scheduled at the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center. Sigman said the sessions would have included classes with as many as 50 people at a time. He said canceling the event is the best option this year.
“We don’t want to violate those rules. We don’t want to spread it. If you have to cancel schools we shouldn’t be having an expo until this is over with,” Sigman said.
One of the larger draws of the event traditionally has been the display by vendors of the latest emergency equipment.
The expo usually draws first responders and vendors from several states that stay in Charleston hotels and frequent restaurants in the Capital City.
The expo is sponsored by the Kanawha County Commission, Kanawha County Metro 911, Kanawha County Sheriff’s Department, Charleston Police, Charleston Fire Department, state Fire Marshal’s Office and Kanawha County Ambulance Authority.