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Omicron pushes COVID to record high in January By DAVID RUPKALVIS The World
COVID-19 cases in January soared to a record high, but the Omicron variant is causing far less mayhem than previous variants. Dr. Eric Gleason, assistant director of Coos Health and Wellness, said as of Wednesday, the county had recorded a record 2,632 cases in January, easily an all-time high for a month during the two-year pandemic. “That’s probably not all of them,” Gleason said. “We are averaging over 100 cases a day at this point. Hopefully we’re starting to plateau out. We’re at 1,500 to 1,600 active cases.” While the case count has
soared to unseen highs, only six new deaths have been linked to the virus in January, one of the lowest counts in more than a year. As of Thursday, there have been 9,158 COVID cases in Coos County during the two-year pandemic. There are currently 1,561 active cases, 13 people in the hospital and 130 deaths reported linked to the virus. While the Omicron variant has had lighter symptoms than previous variants, with most of those infected reporting coldlike symptoms, Gleason said it is too soon to know if there will be long-term effects. Many of the earlier COVID variants had long-term effects that impacted people for months or even years after they were infected.
“I don’t know that we know about long-term effects of this variant,” Gleason said. “It took us a long time to learn about longterm effects of the original virus.” Despite the milder risks, Gleason urged those who test positive or have symptoms to take the virus seriously. He said the fact Omicron is spread so easily continues to put many at risk. “Ideally, if you test positive, you would want to isolate yourself,” Gleason said. “You would want to contact the people you’ve been around in the 48 hours before symptom onset.” With many people now testing at home, Gleason urge those who test positive with a home test to report the result at oregon.gov/ positivecovidtest.
While there are other illnesses reported in the community, Gleason said most sicknesses right now are COVID. “More often than not, if you’re sick, it’s probably COVID,” Gleason said. “Treat it that way. Don’t go to work if you’re sick in any way.” Gleason said not going to work may be tough on your employer, but it’s better than having the whole workforce infected. “It’s hard,” he said. “It’s hit every facet of the community. It’s hit us, it’s hit the hospitals. Every business in the community is struggling with staffing issues.” While there have been reports of some states and communities ending all COVID safety efforts, Gleason said Oregon is still in
the pandemic stage of the virus and it is not time to relax. “I think when we see a strong relief of the hospital system, when this gets to the point it’s more like the flu, then we’re endemic,” he said. “We’re not there yet. Can Omicron help? Yes. I think we’re moving in the right direction, but I don’t think we’re there yet.” Gleason said he understands many people are tired of the virus and especially tired of restrictions related to it, but as long as hospitals are full and people are dying, protective measures need to be taken. “At this point, everyone knows someone close to them that has either been sick, hospitalized or died,” he said.
Photo by David Rupkalvis/The World
Joe McKeown, left, and Marjorie Crook are leading the Judith Ann Mogan Foundation as it continues a legacy of giving to the community that began with Al Pierce many years ago.
Judith Ann Mogan Foundation already making a difference By DAVID RUPKALVIS The World
In addition to being a great businessman, Al Pierce believed in giving back to the community. It is no surprise then, that his daughter, is following in his footsteps. Pierce opened Al Pierce Co., LLC, in Coos Bay many years ago, running a business that became a leader in the timber industry. Even after Pierce died, his company remained at the forefront of the timber world. And through it all, the company was
generous to Coos County, giving back to the communities that made the business a big success. “The family has always been generous to and supportive of the community, going way back,” said Joe McKeown, president of Al Pierce Co., LLC. “As the years went on and more wealth was created, they become even more generous to the community.” In 2020, the Al Pierce Co., LLC, made a big change when it sold almost all of its timberlands and remaining timber assets to Lone Rock. As Pierce’s heir, the sale brought a windfall to Pierce’s
daughter, Judith Ann Mogan. But Mogan, working the McKeown and Marjorie Crook, did something different. She took most of the money and used it to start the Judith Ann Mogan Foundation, with a goal of continuing the work done by her dad and mom, Hilda Pierce, in giving to the community. “It was a very natural progression,” McKeown said. “Secondly, it was important to use that Al Pierce’s legacy continue.” In August 2020, the nonprofit Judith Ann Mogan Foundation was approved by the IRS, and
in December Mogan funded it. In the fall of last year, the first grants were announced. The first grant was a grant to allow North Bend to complete updates to the community pool. By the end of the year, 25 grants were approved and funded. “We really came onto the scene pretty rapidly,” McKeown said. The goal of the foundation will be to support projects in areas where the Pierce company did business. “Our focus is on this part of the state, mainly Coos County, but we also reach into a part of
Curry County,” McKeown said. “We wanted to make sure the benefit was here. That’s where the family grew up and where most of the wealth came from.” The Mogan Foundation is run by a five-person board of directors with McKeown serving as president of the board. The foundation was set up with six primary areas it hopes to support. “Last year we set up six priorities,” Cook said. “Given that the money came from the timberlands, we want to support forest research.” Please see FOUNDATION, Page A10
Mysterious creatures showing up along Oregon’s shoreline JEREMY C. RUARK The World
Courtesy photo from the Seaside Aquarium
The pyrosomes are most commonly found in tropical waters, but stormy ocean conditions are known to bring the mysterious creatures as far north as Alaska.
Photo gallery: Bringing the ocean to life Photo gallery: An easy way to escape into nature AT THEWORLDLINK.COM THE WORLD • Serving Oregon’s South Coast since 1878 • A Country Media Newspaper • Copyright 2021 Follow us online:
Folks that live and visit the Oregon Coast are discovering sea pickles on the sandy beaches. The Seaside Aquarium reports the sea pickles or sea squirts, known as pyrosomes, are washing up all along the Oregon Coast. “We came across one on the beach yesterday, but we have reports of hundreds down on the beach in Florence,” the aquarium’s Facebook post reads. People adding their comments to the aquarium’s post state that they have found the sea pickles at Cannon Beach, Tierra del Mar, Manzanita and Lincoln City. One person wrote, “No doubt from the volcano area off Tonga,” referring to a recent undersea eruption that recently trigger small tsunami waves along the Oregon Coast.
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The pyrosomes are most commonly found in tropical waters, but stormy ocean conditions are known to bring the mysterious creatures as far north as Alaska. As the ocean currents change with the seasons, beachcombers have been finding an abundance of pyrosomes along the high-tide line. The aquarium states in its post that Pyrosoma atlanticum is the most observed species found along Oregon beaches. They are described as a rigid, bumpy, pinkish-gray tube about the size of a finger. Throughout the world pyrosomes can range in size from a few centimeters to over 30 feet long, but the common Pyrosoma atlanticum reaches a maximum length of two feet. “These totally tubular critters are actually known as a colonial tunicate, a mass of thousands of smaller organisms with a rigid notochord (a simplistic backbone),” the aquarium post reads.
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