Aurora Chief, Mayor Talk Coronavirus Battle: 'This Is For Real'

AURORA, IL — One of the last times Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin was in the same room with Police Chief Kristen Ziman and Commander Keith Cross, they were discussing how to protect the force from the new coronavirus, which was just emerging at the time. This time, they gathered together, albet via Zoom, to describe their own battles with coronavirus and to offer words of guidance and inspiration to members of the community.

In the broadcast, shared on the City of Aurora Facebook page, each official talked about their struggles with coronavirus, something Mayor Richard Irvin likened to going "to hell and back."

"At one point I felt like I had gone to the edge and was hanging off and kind of had to claw my way back from the edge," Irvin said. He added, "We’re lucky that we’re here to tell these stories."

Early Symptoms

Cross was the first to test positive for coronavirus, but he wasn't tested immediately. He said he went to the emergency room, but didn't have any respiratory symptoms, so he was tested for the flu, but not initially tested for coronavirus. Cross was tested a couple days later and the test came back positive.

Ziman and Irvin, who had worked closely with Cross before his diagnosis, were tested shortly after displaying milder symptoms that were similar to that of a cold, they said. Their results came back positive as well.

“Things just kind of fell off a cliff and I got worse.”

Cross said he started to feel slightly better, but says that then "[t]hings just kind of fell off a cliff and I got worse.”

He describes having incoherent thoughts and being unable to sleep or eat for days. At one point, Cross, who has a rare blood deficiency, became so dehydrated from vomiting and not eating that he had to go to the emergency room again.

Irvin said his symptoms were similar to Cross's. "Not long after I took the test, I went downhill," Irvin said.

Irvin said he experienced chills, night tremors and incoherent thoughts. "I didn’t eat for like 7 or 8 days straight," Irvin said, calling it the most "[o]ne of the most unsettling feelings that I’ve had.

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Road to Recovery and Lessons Learned

Since their illnesses, Chief Ziman has returned back to work and even took the squad car to pick up local donations of personal protective equipment, which she said was "really nice." Irvin said he's waiting until he's been symptom-free for a few more days before he gets back to the office.

Cross, who apparently had the most severe symptoms of the three, is still recovering at home with a lingering cough and sneeze.

Mayor Richard Irvin urged residents to see him, Cross and Ziman as examples and to learn from their struggles. "This is for real," Irvin said, adding that now people can put a face to the disease.

He encouraged residents to keep heeding Governor J.B. Pritzker's stay-at-home order and to practice social distancing. Irvin said, "If we don’t practice social distancing, we’re gonna give that virus another host to jump to."

Ziman and Cross both said their coronavirus battles have been a period of adjustment. They and Irvin thanked Aurorans, first responders, their coworkers and others for their support during their personal coronavirus battles.

Ziman also encouraged residents to look for the positive things throughout the coronavirus shutdown. Ziman, for instance, is thankful to have her kids home from college with her.

She to Aurorans of the ongoing crisis, "We’re gonna get through this. We just gotta get through this together.”

Illinois Coronavirus Update April 8: 13,549 Cases; 380 Deaths