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Evacuating because of a storm will have an impact on the spread of coronavirus

10 Tampa Bay talked with an infectious disease expert about how evacuating from a storm will impact the spread of coronavirus in Florida.

TAMPA, Fla. — Even though we don't have to evacuate, Hurricane Isaias is certainly a wake up call to have your plan in place. 

And that's different this year because not only do we have to think about the hurricane, we also have to protect ourselves from coronavirus. 

So let's take a deeper dive at how evacuating could impact the spread of the virus.

We talked with Dr. Jill Roberts, an infectious disease expert with USF College of Public Health.

She said take Pinellas County for example because it's on a coast line. 

RELATED: Hurricane Isaias no longer forecast to strengthen into a Category 2 storm

What happens if people from there, evacuate to Hillsborough County, where case numbers are higher? 

She says that could affect our county by county percentages.     

Roberts says we want to make sure that people who are evacuating from areas of high spread, don't infect the places they go. 

"So if you've left your area, you don't want to suddenly start going to restaurants, not wearing a mask in a grocery store and all of these things in the new area that you go to."

One thing that worries her: young people who don't know they're infected evacuating to a home with their parents. 

A good reminder from her too: if you evacuate to a hotel, you're fine in your room, but if you go out to get ice or a snack, put on your mask. That's an open area and you don't know where others in that hotel are from. 

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