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'Just Not Right': State Rep. Surprised Greene, Fayette And Washington Counties Are Not Moving To 'Yellow' Phase Of Gov. Wolf's Coronavirus Reopening Plan

WASHINGTON COUNTY (KDKA) -- A state representative for Greene, Fayette and Washington counties is asking the governor to reconsider moving those counties to the next phase of his reopening plan.

On Friday, Gov. Tom Wolf announced that 24 counties are moving into the "yellow" phase of reopening on May 8.

When asked why the southwestern part of the state would not open, Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine cited population density as a concern.

Rep. Pam Snyder (D-50th) posted an emotional video to her Facebook page on Friday afternoon, stating Greene, Fayette and Washington counties should not be grouped with Allegheny County.

SWPA is Not Pittsburgh

Keeping our rural counties under the same lockdown as Philadelphia & Pittsburgh is ridiculous. I fought hard to get coal mining on the essential job list, and I'm continuing my fight for the safe easing of restrictions on our communities. More: https://www.pahouse.com/Snyder/InTheNews/NewsRelease/?id=113765

Posted by Rep. Pam Snyder on Friday, May 1, 2020

"I would like the governor and the secretary to take a drive down to Greene County so we can just show them about the density, or lack thereof," Snyder said in the video.

"The announcement today was extremely surprising to me and extremely disappointing to me," she added. "So I am hoping the Wolf administration takes a long, hard look at this, within the next week, and put Greene, Fayette and Washington counties where they belong."

She told KDKA she feels the state should be reopening by county, not by region.

"Allegheny County is different than Greene, Fayette, Washington, Butler, the surrounding counties," she said. "We're more rural. We don't have the density in population."

Snyder also cited the number of coronavirus cases and related deaths in those three counties.

Per the Pennsylvania Health Department, Greene County has had 26 cases and no deaths.

Fayette County has 81 cases and four deaths, while Washington County has 116 cases and two deaths.

"I think the fact that was not looked at, recognized, acknowledged, is just not right," Snyder said.

While she believes it's time for certain counties in southwestern Pennsylvania to move to the "yellow" phase, she says she understands it has to be done with safety in mind.

"We recognize that it's going to be a new normal and we can do that," she said.

In the aftermath of the governor's announcement, reactions were mixed in Washington County.

"When you look at all the numbers, it was sort of surprising we weren't moved up," said Tom Loadman of Peters Township.

"It is something that we kind of expected to happen," added Gary Fudala of McMurray.

However, some did express concern for local businesses.

"I do feel bad for the businesses and people that have to wait," said Ruth Kulish of Canonsburg.

Washington, Fayette and Greene counties could still be next to move out of the "red" phase, according to Governor Wolf.

"We're already looking at other counties to move from red to yellow counties," he said in a Friday press conference. "In particular, we have our eyes on counties in the southwest and a few in the south-central regions that have lower new case rates but where we have a few concerns."

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