By CHRIS JOHNSON

NEW YORK — The country has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the state of New York and its citizens have felt the brunt of the virus.

There have been over 98,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and over 6,000 deaths with 9,736 recovered victims in the state.

Fort Dodge native Kim Hale, who has lived in New York for over 20 years, has seen firsthand what kind of effect it has had.

“The people I have interacted with all seem to be worried,” said Hale a 1995 Fort Dodge Senior High graduate. “Everyone is on edge. I know many people who have it or have family members who have it. It’s just a very scary thing.

“So many things have been canceled or closed and that’s really hard for people in my community. Not knowing what life will be like if or when it returns to “normal.”

Hale, who is a freelance American Sign Language Interpreter and a teaching artist in musical theatre in New York, is quarantined in her New York apartment.

“My boyfriend and I are self-quarantined in our sixth floor walkup apartment and have been since March 13,” Hale said. “We have only left the building about three times, for crucial things (sick cat to the vet and prescriptions).

“We have personally gotten all of our groceries delivered, but I know a lot of people who have been out to the stores and that many stores have put up plexiglass partitions to protect the workers. A lot of standing in lines six feet apart, masks and gloves — it’s very eerie.”

With the virus becoming a threat in March, people started seeing the signs.

“I guess I realized in early March (how serious it was),” Hale said. “All of the sudden events started getting postponed out of caution, then there was a lot more hand washing with the students in the school and people noticing other people’s coughs and illnesses.

“Then one day my boyfriend’s work has him testing while working at home (he works for the city of New York) and then within like two days it was a full on thing. We tried to prepare early on and I’m grateful that we took it seriously as early as we did. That actually feels like months ago — not three weeks.”

New York, who was one of the first three states to proclaim a shelter-in-place order, has definitely seen the coronavirus change daily living.

“Many people I know lost their jobs overnight, it honestly feels like most people I know,” Hale said. “I feel guilty that I still have a job, when so many people don’t.

“People that I talk to are worried, and scared, but many are trying to stay positive. It’s really hard, but New Yorkers are tough.”

Hale, the daughter of former Fort Dodge city councilman John Hale, can’t believe the sight when you step on the streets of New York.

“Going out into the neighborhood (when taking the cat to the vet) was a little like being in a war zone,” Hale said. “It was a Saturday afternoon and typically our neighborhood would be buzzing with people out and about, and it felt like a ghost town. Businesses closed, some boarded up, people with masks on everywhere. Just unnerving and unsettling.

“To even see the vet we had to call and tell them we were outside, and someone fully masked and geared up came out to get the cat and take her in, We had a consultation with the vet over the phone, and waited six feet apart from other people waiting the whole time — it just felt bizarre.”

Even though COVID-19 has had such a negative impact on New York and the nation, Hale is staying optimistic and is grateful for everyone who is trying to fight through the pandemic.

“I am insanely grateful to all of the good and hard working people in New York City who are helping all of us through this,” Hale said. “The hospital and health care workers, the city officials, NYPD, FDNY, and our local vet’s office. But also the people that we might not recognize enough — the small business owners, people bringing mail and packages, the bus drivers, subway workers, the delivery people, the people who are working in grocery stores — I could go on and on.

“I might think it’s hard to be stuck inside — but I am so grateful and have so much respect for the people who are out there keeping this city going. That’s the real challenge, and we are lucky to have all of the amazing people in this city out there keeping things running.”

With changes abound there are a lot of things missing from everyone’s life, but sometimes the little things mean the most.

“I take the bus every day to my school, and I see the same bus driver every morning,” Hale said. “The last time I saw him I told him I hope I would get to see him again soon and I hoped he would be safe and OK. We gave each other elbow bumps through protective glass.

“New York might be a big city, but we have small town connections just like in Iowa. I can’t wait until this is over and I can thank all of those people in person, and give my bus driver a hug.”