Rome, GA– The Georgia Department of Public Health Northwest Health District office in Rome and health departments in Bartow, Catoosa, Chattooga, Dade, Floyd, Gordon, Haralson, Paulding, Polk, and Walker counties will close early to clients and visitors on Monday, August 21st in the interest of public safety during the solar eclipse. The health departments will close at 12 pm and the district office will close at 1 pm. This closing applies to all public health services in the district, including Environmental Health, WIC, and Children’s Health services.
If viewing the solar eclipse, residents are urged to follow these safety precautions:
- Do not look directly at the sun
- Sunglasses do not provide sufficient protection
- Only look at the sun through an approved solar filter
- For even safer viewing, observe indirectly by projecting the sun’s image onto a blank sheet of white paper with a pinhole camera or with binoculars
For more safety information, log onto NASA’s website at https://eclipse2017.nasa.gov/safety.