UPDATE on Covid-19 at LCSO: 16 have tested positive & Sheriff McCallum currently one of 5 who are sick

Like the rest of the country, the Levy County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) continues to be affected by the COVID 19 virus. As of August 4, 2020, the agency has had 16 employees who have tested positive for the COVID 19 virus. Most of those employees have returned to duty. Currently, five employees are on leave due to COVID-19, one of whom is Sheriff Bobby McCallum.

Sheriff Bobby McCallum advised his employees, by way of a memo on August 4, that he has tested positive for the virus and believes he was exposed, approximately 10 days previously, when he met with another infected sheriff, who was not aware at the time of being infected with the virus. Sheriff McCallum stated that his symptoms have been minor, and he has been able to continue to work remotely from home.

Fortunately, the small number of positive cases among the agency's employees has not had a major impact on the day-to-day operations of the sheriff’s office, said Lt. Scott Tummond, the head of the LCSO's Professional Standards Division. He said that the LCSO will continue to follow the guidlines and protocols of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Florida Department of Health, to help keep employees and citizens safe.

AUGUST 5, 2020 UPDATE:
According to ABC Action News WFTS Tampa Bay and the Pesacola News Journal, Sheriff McCallum is one of six people who tested positive for the Covid-19 virus after attending a 3-day Florida Sheriffs Association conference at the Hyatt Coconut Point Resort in Bonita Springs, (Lee County) Florida, last week. The others include Florida Department of Corrections Secretary Mark Inch and his Deputy Secretary Ricky Dixon, Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood, Gilchrist County Sheriff Bobby Schultz. and Santa Rosa County Sheriff Bob Johnson. About 60 people attended the conference, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Attorney General Ashley Moody.