LA County Says COVID-19 Case Confirmed at Malibu Road Feeding Effort – Church Says Not So
Written by 991KBU on October 6, 2020
CORRECTED AT 8:27AM WEDNESDAY – The agency in Santa Monica is the St. Joseph Center, not the St. Thomas Center, as first reported.
A person who has been in attendance at a line of free food for poor people … on Old Malibu Road in the Civic Center area … has tested positive for COVID-19.
Los Angeles County Department of Public Health Officials say the person was a non-staff member, but a person being served at the Malibu Methodist Church food line.
But Kay Gabbard, who has been feeding poor people in Malibu for years, says the county report is not correct.
Gabbard told KBUU Radio that the person experiencing homelessness was tested at a regular weekly test for people at the old post office, on old Malibu Road.
St. Joseph Center from Santa Monica has a weekly COVID-19 test for anyone who walks up Wednesdays there. and hands out sandwiches to people for free to attract people.
The St. Joseph workers returned Friday, when several Malibu residents also hand out sandwiches on the street there.
The person who tested positive was offered a room to quarantine in in Santa Monica, and accepted.
A spokesperson for the church, 8 miles away at Zuma, says the church is not affiliated with the ad hoc group of Malibu residents who distribute food and life necessities at the Civic Center area.
The persons feeding the poor on the beach are often members of … and are active at … the church.
There has been a years-long tussle between church members, intent on serving those with nothing, and other people who object to persons being attracted to Malibu.
Now, Public health officials said on their official Coronavirus census sheet that the positive case was discovered in a non staff member.
Again, the church spokeswoman says the recipient of food … who tested positive … was not at the church.
But the persons who came in contact with this person are all in self-isolation.
Meanwhile, there are internet reports that a Malibu business has closed its doors – for a through disinfection cleaning – due to a positive COVID 19 test there.
Businesses must self-report positive COVID-19 tests if they get three of them.
As of this morning … no such report has been filed for Malibu lately.
