CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) – While VDOT, public works crews and first responders are all dealing with the recent accumulation of both snow and ice, the record low temperatures are also creating concerns for public health and safety.

Temperatures are expected to reach an unprecedented 3 degrees above zero on Monday night, and not get above freezing until Thursday afternoon when reaching 34 degrees.  The extreme temperatures raise concerns for the unhoused and any community members that have to spend extended periods outdoors.

Newly appointed State Health Commissioner and veteran of the UVA Health System Dr. Cameron Webb said one of the top concerns is hypothermia.

“When we’re seeing the kind of extreme cold coming out way the next couple of days, there’s a very real risk, especially for folks that spend any kind of time outdoors, as they’re shoveling or getting acclimated to being outdoors there’s also the risk of slipping on ice, [but] certainly hypothermia is a risk,” Dr. Webb told WINA Morning News.

He went on to describe the symptoms one should be aware of if hypothermia is beginning to occur.

“We’ve seen an increase of hypothermia visits to the emergency department over the last couple of days and we expect with the increase in cold we’ll see more of that,” he said. “The symptoms again are going to be familiar to people, it’s shivering, confusion, and as it goes on, slurred speech and drowsiness that’s that kind of severe hypothermia. Those are things as folks become more confused or lethargic we really need to get you to some care urgently.”

While Dr. Webb is an established physician, he is also a former candidate for the 5th District Congressional seat, and now in his new cabinet position in the Spanberger administration, he has some clear priorities for public health in Virginia.

“You know I think our top priority is wrapped up in our mission, which is, we want Virginia to be the healthiest state in the nation,” Webb said. “And I think that starts with knowing what our community needs and listening to our communities and being fierce advocates for the health needs of our communities.”

Webb takes over one of the larger state agencies and believes they have a significant role to play in the administration.

“There are almost 4,000 people who work in the Virginia Department of Health and they’re passionate about keeping our communities healthy and so really giving them the tools and the support necessary to do just that, that’s my top priority,” he said. “I think that across the board there’s going to be a lot of work to do and as these moments come up we’ll rise to the occasion for emergencies but there are a lot of dynamics to help and we want to try to show up for folks on all of them.”