Fallon County
T IMES BAKER, MONTANA
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December 4, 2020
State, local health officials stress mask usage, tracing in COVID-19 fight Staff Report
The residents of Baker got a quick visit from Santa Claus Sunday as he left his sleigh behind and rolled into the park in an old horse-drawn wagon. A short time later, the park lit up even more when the annual Christmas Tree lighting kicked off the holiday season for Fallon County and had the star atop the tree share the sky for a while with a Beaver Moon. PHOTOS/Brad Mosher
Santa visit lights up Baker park yule event Staff Report
It may have been too warm for a sleigh Sunday, but Santa still rolled into Baker - relying on a horse-drawn wagon. As the temperatures dropped into the 20s outside, he rolled up to the north edge of the park prompting a quick flood of children to the north edge parking lot. The red-clad visitor talked briefly to the children and then read Twas the Night Before Christmas aloud to them before rolling away to his next stop.
Inside the park, the city had vendors, a nativity and Christmas decorations to celebrate the annual Christmas Tree lighting. Finally, around dusk, the countdown began with the lights covering a tree coming to life after the countdown hit zero. Behind the tree, the Beaver Moon rose in the sky eventually climbing higher than the star atop the tree. As the temperatures dropped, several fire pits in and around the park became even more popular with some toasting marshmallows on the open fires.
Fallon County suffers first fatality Staff Report
Fallon County recently hit a high of 80 active cases in the county, but that number quickly dropped. However, the county also recently logged its first COVID-related fatality. That meant Fallon County had joined a growing number of counties in the state of Montana which has logged a death that was related to the Coronavirus which has swept the upper Midwest in recent months. As of Dec. 1, the state has had more than 62,000 confirmed cases, with most in the more populous Yellowstone and Flathead counties. There have been 698 COVID-19 deaths state-wide as of Dec. 1, according to the state
health department. By comparison, neighboring Carter County has had three fatalities, the same as Wibaux County to the north. Prairie County has had the same number of fatalities as Fallon County – one. Yellowstone County has had 120 fatalities so far in 2020, while Flathead County has 39. The recent surge in active cases in the county has dropped to just 30 in the final announcement of November statistics. The county has had 221 people recover from the pandemic with only two still hospitalized. Since the year began, the health department has reported 251 cases in Fallon County. Since Nov. 22, when the county health department announced the fatality on Facebook the
numbers have dropped from 49 active cases and seven people hospitalized. Two days earlier, the county reported 51 active cases, while on Nov. 19 there were 68 active cases reported. The highest number of cases was 80 reported on Nov. 13 by the county health department. Fallon County has been getting some help recently, with two National Guardsmen temporarily stationed in Fallon County. “The purpose of these individuals are to help Fallon Medical Complex with non-medical duties (such as cleaning and defogging of COVID-19 positive patient rooms) and relieve some of the current strain on our hospital,” the health department announced Nov. 20 on Facebook. According to recent statistics
released by the county, the highest number of active cases has been in the 30 to 39 age group, followed by those in their 50s and those between the ages of 10 and 19. According to state officials, Montana has been averaging more than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases each day. Gov. Steve Bullock recently tightened the public-health restrictions on bars, restaurants and other public-gathering spots and events and extended a mask-wearing mandate to all counties. The guidelines restricted restaurants and bars to 50 percent capacity and must close by 10 p.m. Public gatherings will be limited to 25 people, where social-distancing isn’t possible.
Local Community Cupboard sees COVID-19 impact Staff Report
The increase in COVID-19 in Fallon County has had an impact on the local community cupboard. According to Carla Brown, the donations to the food pantry have dropped. “It is being made use of more that it had been before,” she said Tuesday. “We used it quite a bit before, but since this has started I would say that we are definitely seeing more usage.” “A lot of times we had received significant donations through the school system... that we
haven’t been receiving this year. We have gotten donations from independent individuals – a fair amount.” Much of the donations recently have come in the form of money or canned goods, she explained. “We don’t get a lot of fresh produce. But the amount of canned, non-perishable items that we normally would get has been down.” “Most of our meat products are from local people who have had meat butchered and have given us some of that meat frozen,” she added. Most of the donated meat are local cattle. “We have had venison before, but right now
we primarily have beef on hand,” she added. “We do accept monetary donations. We give that out on a voucher basis – only to be used for groceries. It can not be used for alcohol or tobacco products. We do that in conjunction with the local grocery store.” If people are interested in contacting the Community Cupboard for either more information or to make a donation, they can call 406-778-3595 or visit the Cupboard at 420 Montana Avenue West. The Cupboard is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m., but people are asked to call first before they come.
In Baker, many businesses have posted signs requiring customers to wear masks when inside. For some, the issue of masks may be political. For others, it is a way to protect themselves and others from the pandemic that has gotten to the point where the state of Montana has statistically exploded in the number of cases and the impact it has had on life. Gov. Steve Bullock set up a directive for requiring mask usage in July, but set it up so that it was the county health departments who would initiate the mandate. For Fallon County, that happened Sept. 30 when the county announced four positive cases. Since then, the county has increased the number of daily positives, reaching as high as 80 at one point. Montana state health officials have reported 62,198 total cases of COVID-19 for Nov. 30, 2020. There were 681 people who have died of the virus. However, the COVID problem is serious in Fallon County, the health department explained on its Facebook page Nov. 20 when it stated “with one-fifth of our cases being very sick, hospitalized individuals, we urge you to do what you can to decrease the spread and send well wishes to all of those affected.” On Nov. 21, the county health department had 54 listed as active cases and 11 currently hospitalized. The county health department also announced that the county has contracted with professional contract tracers from around Montana to help with case investigations. In a post on Facebook, the county health department said “COVID-19 is now widespread in our community which increases the possibility of being in contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19. If someone calls you from a non-local Montana number to identify you as a close contact, this call is legitimate. “The person should identify themselves as being with the Fallon County Health Department. “Please answer your phone,
answer their questions and help us stop the spread of COVID-19,” the department post stated. In addition, the health department said that the contact tracers should not be asking to purchase anything, ask for personal financial information and any personal numbers such as Social Security o Medicare. The questions should be to get your full name, address, phone number, email address and birthdate. In addition, people will be asked for the dates and places they have recently been and any symptoms being experience along when went they started. “No rights or HIPPA regulations will be violated, we are simply asking for help to slow the spread of this virus,” the health department stated on its Facebook page. “Things like approximate time of the contact would also be given on the phone call. If you have any questions, I would welcome you to call the health department at 406-7782824 to get some clarification. “They will leave a generic voicemail stating they are with the Fallon County Health Department. “Physical address is needed so if a first responder got called to your house to provide medically needed help, they would be aware that someone in your household has COVID-19 and take proper precautions. Email address is optional and would be used only if you approved that as a way of correspondence,” the county health department explained online. Mask poll According to a recent Gallup poll, a relatively small proportion of Americans say it is probably or definitely false that the coronavirus can be spread by infected people without symptoms. Because of that, there is a lower likelihood to wear masks in public. Ten percent of poll respondents said they have not worn a mask when outside their home in the past seven days – and increases to 34 percent among don’t believe there is such a thing as asymptomatic transmission of the virus. Asymptomatic transmission is where people who do not show symptoms can spread the virus.
Drive-in movie planned for mid-month at fairgrounds The Fallon County Fairgrounds is planning a two-night drive-in in the parking area next to the Livestock Barn. According to a fairgrounds spokesperson, there is an online survey for choosing the Christmas-themed movie to be played Dec. 12 and Dec. 13. The survey ends Friday, Dec. 4. The parking lot will be open, but people will have to bring their own concessions or snacks.