11 minute read
METRO BRiEFS
Coronavirus info czar Judy Burrows is the point person when local people have questions about handling COVID-19 warnings, mandates and data
Public health efforts to curtail the coronavirus pandemic has prompted the closure or cutback of schools, businesses, events and even churches across the Wisconsin and the nation this week. That includes restaurants and bars, which were ordered closed (except for carryout) under an order from Gov. Tony Evers on Tuesday, leaving business owners without revenue and many employees without income. Other crucial services such as hospitals and grocery stores, are exempt.
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The state mandate on public gatherings could be confusing. People had a lot of questions. And many of those fell to Judy Burrows, who has been designated the COVID-19 (coronavirus) Public Health Information Officer at the Marathon County Health Department. Plenty of people have been calling her seeking answers.
Burrows says the department yesterday took a ton of calls from owners of restaurants and other businesses asking about the governor’s order banning most public gatherings of more than 10 people.
“The order really locked down a lot of businesses, a lot of restaurants closed down,” Burrows says.
About every other call was from employers asking about employee symptoms and how to handle it. The answer: Since without testing it’s hard to discern if an illness is COVID-19 or a flu or cold, best to just go home. “Good infection control measures are sick employees staying home,” Burrows says. Burrows stepped into the public information role on March 9, but otherwise works as the health department’s program director for Community Health Improvement. And she has acted as a PIO before, such as for H1N1. As of Wednesday, there were 106 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Wisconsin. That’s up from 72 on Tuesday, 47 on Monday, and 27 on Saturday, according to the Department of Health Services. The closest confirmed case to the Wausau area is in Wood County, which has one confirmed case. DHS has been providing daily updates at 2 pm.
The county health department will be notified if a confirmed case occurs in Marathon County, Burrows tells City Pages. People are being tested here by area health providers and the swabs are sent to labs for testing, Burrows says. If a case is confirmed by those labs, the state health department and the county health department will be notified. Should that happen, county health officers will conduct a contact investigation, interviewing everyone the person had contact with to ensure it doesn’t spread.
One local pathologist told City Pages that not enough testing kits are available for labs to keep up with testing.
Social distancing is an important way to slow the spread of the disease, which experts say will be around for months — it’s not something that is going to go away overnight. Covering your mouth when you cough, washing hands and using hand sanitizer are all ways to help limit the spread.
◄ Judy Burrows is the Coronavirus Public Information Officer at the Marathon County Health Department.
Symptoms are very similar to the flu, Burrows says, and if someone has those symptoms they should call their health care provider first — each provider might have its own protocol for how to test their patients, especially ones who might have the coronavirus. Evers on Thursday declared a state of emergency because of the communicable disease, and canceled K-12 in person classes over the weekend. On Monday Evers ordered gatherings of 50 or more people prohibited, and on Tuesday upgraded that prohibition to 10 or more, with restaurants and bars ordered to close (restaurants can still offer takeout). The governor also issued an order allowing the DOT to issue relief supply permits for items related to the coronavirus for grocery retailers, and DOT secretary Craig Thompson ordered the Wisconsin State Patrol to assist with transporting testing kits. The Wisconsin National Guard was mobilized to help bring 29 Grand Princess cruise ship passengers back to their homes in Wisconsin.
At the local government level, municipal buildings are shutting their doors to the public outside of allowing voting and considering ways in order to hold meetings via teleconferences. Many have been canceled, such as a city of Wausau public information meeting on the sewer and water plant upgrades that was supposed to have been held Wednesday.
Potential impact on April 7 elections, polling places Municipal clerks in the area say they’ve seen an uptick in the number of absentee ballots as the impacts of the Coronavirus take hold and send people home, and they expect more.
Wausau City Clerk Leslie Kremer says the office has already seen a greater than usual number of absentee ballots. And Clerk Sherry Weinkauf in Weston sent out a release encouraging more voters to take advantage of absentee ballots so they can steer clear of the polls on April 7; as did Marathon County Clerk Kim Trueblood.
In Weston, all four polling places in the village are being moved to Dale’s Weston Lanes, and voters will receive a notification letting them know about the change. Kremer says city officials haven’t gotten word of any talk about postponing the election, but says they’re concerned about losing poll workers out of concern about the coronavirus.
Although the deadline to register online or by mail to vote was Wednesday, those who are already registered can request an absentee ballot as late as April 2. And those who missed the online or by mail registration deadline can still register at their municipal clerk’s office by April 3, or at the polls on election day, April 7.
Why the shutdowns and crowd limits? The closures and limit on gatherings of 10 or more people have left businesses without revenue and employees without pay, while others are working from home. The streets on what would ordinarily be a busy Wednesday looked more like a lazy Sunday as people stay home. The Marathon County Sheriff’s Office called the situation unprecedented. Officers don’t want to cite or arrest small business owners during an already difficult time, according to a recent news release, but also say the Gov. Tony Evers’ orders carry weight. The office will allow business owners time to prepare for the shut down but also say they will cite or arrest if they receive reports of violations.
That matters, because the next two weeks are critical, says Dr. Sarah Sewall, a pathologist at Associates in Pathology in Wausau. She says the next two weeks are a critical window where people should be practicing social distancing.
And when she means social distancing, she means no socializing of any kind and only going out when necessary. And maintaining a bubble of six feet is important.
“We’re in a very crucial period where we can change the trajectory of this disease,” Sewall says. “We need to do it now. The epidemiological studies are so clear, our doubling times are tracking exactly with Italy.” That country is currently on lockdown with only grocery stores, pharmacies and convenience stores open. “The only tool we have in our tool box is social distancing.” Sewall, who is also a mother, says parents have been asking about small play dates while their children are at home. She tells them absolutely not.
Social distancing is needed to prevent a surge of people contracting the virus. Doctors are already having ethical conversations around what will happen if that surge hits a critical mass that overtaxes the hospital system, Sewall says. That could mean far more people needing hospital beds than there are actual beds.
Children in day care should wash their hands when they come home, change clothes and get in the shower or bath to prevent the illness from spreading, Sewall told City Pages.
Free lunches for Wausau area students ► One big and immediate concern surrounding the COVID-19 school closures was that so many students rely on schools for breakfast and lunch. Some local businesses have stepped up to provide food for children who relied on school lunches to eat.
Urban Street Bistro will be setting up at area elementary schools and offering free lunches once per week for the community, starting Thursday at GD Jones Elementary School, with other lunches planned at Stettin, Riverview and Franklin schools. “It’s just a small gesture to help our community stay strong and healthy, moving forward together,” Urban Street Bistro staff wrote on Facebook.
Other restaurant owners have put out on Facebook that they’re willing to help students or community members who can’t find enough to eat.
To help feed hungry children, local school district, with support from Blessings in a Backpack and numerous community sponsors, will serve grab and go meal bags at various schools in the Wausau and D.C. Everest school district. These meals are available Monday-Friday through April 3 (see graphic for schedule). Children will receive grab-ngo meals plus breakfast for the next day. Any adult picking up meals must have their child(ren) present in the vehicle. Any child 18 and under is welcome to pick up meals. Meals cannot be consumed on-site.
And the Boys & Girls Club will hold an afternoon pick-up meal service 4:30-5:30 pm at its building at 1710 N Second Street. Other aid on the way— The Community Foundation of North Central Wisconsin has opened a COVID-19 Community Response fund in order to help mitigate local impacts. Marshfield Clinic Health System also announced that it created a COVID-19 Community Support Fund. The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation announced Wednesday $5 million in small business grants to help provide relief for losses suffered during the downturn.
10:30 am–12:30 pm at: DC Everest Middle School DC Everest Senior High Evergreen Elementary Hatley Elementary Rothschild Elementary Weston Elementary
11:00 – 11:20 am at: GD Jones Elementary Jefferson Elementary Lincoln Elementary Riverview Elementary Horace Mann Wausau West High
12:05–12:30 pm at: Hawthorn Hills Elementary
Social distancing help for the homeless Catholic Charities moved its warming shelter to East Gate Hall in Marathon Park, United Way leaders told City Pages.
The shelter opened in the parks building Tuesday night, says Ben Lee of the United Way, as a means of being able to provide the warming shelter while still providing social distancing. At the current shelter, Catholic Charities needed to limit the numbers to only 10 people at a time because that’s all the space allowed in keeping with social distancing rules.
The move is a result of local government and non-profit leaders coming together to find a solution, Lee says. Wausau/Marathon County Parks, Recreation and Forestry quickly agreed and helped facilitate the move when asked if East Gate Hall could be used as a shelter.
“The United Way convened the (meeting of) leaders but it was a group effort with everyone acting together quickly to form a solid plan, and a Plan B just in case,” Lee says. “There’s a saying ‘it takes a village’ — that was the case last night.”
Catholic Charities will operate its shelter until April 30, when the warming shelter would normally close anyway.
Empty shelves at ALDI Saturday night – people are stocking up as cancelations pile up in anticipation of the Coronavirus.
Anticipated week for: Announcement coming soon on Stevens Point police chief An investigation into the Stevens Point police chief has concluded and an announcement is expected soon, according to Stevens Point officials.
The city’s police and fire commission met in closed session Tuesday about the investigation into the conduct of Martin Skibba, Stevens Point’s Police Chief who was placed on administrative leave earlier this month. According to a press release from the police and fire commission, commission representatives will be meeting with Stevens Point Police Chief Martin Skibba, with an announcement to follow.
Officials have been mum on details of the situation. It’s unclear who placed Skibba on leave since no meeting minutes or agendas indicate that the commission, which has jurisdiction over police department hiring and firing, took any action regarding the chief.
Good week for: Out of home child placements drop The number of children being placed outside their homes has dropped slightly last year, according to data from Marathon County Department of Social Services.
In 2019, 264 children were removed from their homes and placed in foster care, according to that data. That’s slightly down from 2018, when 279 children were removed, and 2017 when 277 were removed. The number of out of home placements have been steadily rising since 2011 as the county has seen an increase in the addiction sparked by the opioid crisis, leaving more parents unable to care for their children.
Social Services Director Vicki Tylka says it’s too early to know if the downswing is a trend in the right direction or temporary. It’s hoped that efforts the county has been making, including adding drug courts and the success of the Lakeside Recovery addiction treatment center are having an impact.
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