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You are here: Home / Uncategorized / Camp Jordan Urged to End Relationship with ‘Repticon’

Camp Jordan Urged to End Relationship with ‘Repticon’

October 22, 2020 By Dick Cook and Contributed Article Leave a Comment

On Wednesday, World Animal Protection, a global animal welfare non-profit organization, fired off a letter to Camp Jordan Arena asking officials there to end its relationship with a national reptile expo company to help prevent the next possible pandemic.

In an open letter, the organization called on Adam Wilson, Parks and Recreation Director, to no longer host Repticon, the latest of which is scheduled to take place this weekend, Oct. 23-25. World Animal Protection has also reached out to local health officials in the area to put an end to the hosting of these events.

Ben Williamson, U.S. programs director, says: “It’s inconceivable that when many states are still seeing increases in the number of Covid-19 cases that the Camp Jordan Arena would consider playing host a second time to a live wild animal market. While Covid-19 is believed to have started many thousands of miles away in Wuhan, China, the conditions of live animals being confined together in close proximity to humans are remarkably similar to those we’ve investigated at U.S. reptile markets such as Repticon.

“Reptiles are known vectors of zoonotic diseases and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention holds them responsible for salmonellosis outbreaks every year which hospitalize people. Households with children under five are specifically warned against keeping reptiles, yet worryingly, there are no age restrictions at these events. At a time when we’re observing the CDC’s advice over Covid-19, it seems crazy not to follow its guidance on avoiding contact with reptiles.

“No amount of hand-sanitizer or social distancing is going to make reptile expos completely safe for humans and animals. It’s time to cut its ties with this risky business once and for all.”

East Ridge City Manager Chris Dorsey said he had not seen any letter from the organization. He had no comment.

Filed Under: FEATURED POSTS, News, Uncategorized

About Dick Cook

Dick Cook has lived in East Ridge since the Kennedy Administration when his parents bought a house on Marietta Street. Dick graduated from ERHS in 1976 before going on to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga where he studied Political Science. Dick worked for the Chattanooga Free-Press and the Chattanooga Times Free Press for 22 years. Free-Press Sports Editor Roy Exum plucked him out of production in 1989 and gave him a job as a sports reporter. Dick covered everything from prep sports to the whitewater events on the Ocoee River for the 1996 Olympics. When Chattanooga's two paper's merged, he became the Crime Reporter covering both the Chattanooga Police and Fire Departments. He was among reporters who were honored by the Associated Press for the TFP's coverage of the 2002 fog-shrouded crash on I-75 in Catoosa County, Dick and his wife, Cathy, live on Marlboro Avenue where they are seen frequently chasing around their three grandsons.

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