‘COVID is no joke’ warns Irmo mayor after he tests positive for coronavirus

Irmo Mayor Barry Walker and his wife Susan have both tested positive for COVID-19.

As the couple recovers from the coronavirus, the mayor said “COVID is no joke.”

Diagnosed in early September, Walker said he is slowly recovering after COVID-19 took a toll on him.

“This virus is brutal. It wipes you of energy,” Walker told The State on Sunday. “I couldn’t move for four or five days. I barely could lift my head.”

Walker’s situation was complicated by the fact that he suffers from kidney failure and he said he’s on the waiting list for a transplant. In the meantime, he receives dialysis treatment three times a week, something that has continued since it was confirmed he had coronavirus.

When he’s treated, Walker said he’s in isolation, has his temperature taken, and is otherwise monitored.

“I’m lucky I have a little immune system left,” said Walker, adding he has not been hospitalized for coronavirus treatment.

Walker said his situation has been helped by wearing a mask in public. He said he was exposed inside his home after his wife tested positive for COVID-19 in the first week of September. Walker said his wife thinks she was infected while at work as the food service supervisor at the Broad River Correctional Institution, but they are not certain.

Although they tried to social distance inside their home, Walker tested positive for the coronavirus a week after his wife’s diagnosis. A loss of taste and smell were the early signs that Walker had contracted COVID-19.

Walker said his wife has recovered, while he is on the mend but is far from 100%. He expects to remain quarantined at home for at least another week.

“I’ve gotten to the point it has run its course,” Walker said. “I’m not on my death bed and am breathing OK.”

While his health is improving, Walker urged everyone to wear a mask in public to help reduce the spread of coronavirus.

“Going to a football game, to a bar, or out in public without a mask is not safe. It will put you in the grave,” Walker said. “Wear masks until they come out with a vaccine that works to stay safe. Corona does not discriminate.”

Walker was proud that Irmo is one of several Midlands municipalities that has an ordinance requiring masks to be worn in public. He said any complaints directed to him about a mask requirement will fall on “deaf ears.”

“Wear your masks: it works,” Walker said.

This story was originally published September 27, 2020 at 2:57 PM.