Courthouse closes after worker tests positive for COVID-19

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) - A judge has signed an order closing a North Carolina courthouse to the public after a worker tested positive for COVID-19.

Todd Burke, senior resident Superior Court judge, signed an order on Thursday which closed the Forsyth County Hall of Justice effective on Friday, The Winston-Salem Journal reports. The court is scheduled to reopen to the public on May 4.

Burke said an employee came to work on Thursday exhibiting symptoms consistent with COVID-19. According to Burke, the employee left work immediately and went to a medical professional to get tested. Burke said he was told late Thursday afternoon that the employee tested positive.

Although he didn’t identify the worker, Burke said that the employee worked in the bookkeeping department in the clerk’s office. The order said the clerk is responsible for helping people with payments and for filing and distributing papers within the clerk’s office.

“This individual may have exposed other immediate staff members and they therefore may have exposed other individuals throughout the Forsyth County Hall of Justice,” Burke wrote in his order.