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FRIDAY, JULY 24, 2020

SERVING OUR COMMUNITY SINCE 1879 • WWW.TRIPLICATE.COM

Prison staff testing shows more virus cases By David Hayes The Triplicate

Results from staff testing conducted last week at Pelican Bay State Prison are beginning to arrive and positive test results have been received, the Del Norte County Public Health officer said Wednesday afternoon. According Dr. Warren Rehwaldt, some of positive results are residents of Curry County and will be recorded in their jurisdiction’s data. “Staff at PBSP were tested over a three-day period early last week following a directive from the CDCR (California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation),” Rehwaldt said in a press release. “Prison officials are working closely with Del Norte County Public Health to facilitate case investigation and contact tracing.” Individuals who have tested positive and their direct contacts are being advised to quarantine at home. No one has been hospitalized and most individuals are asymptomatic. “Additional measures are being conducted in order to ensure that all positive cases are identified related to this prison cluster,” Rehwaldt added. “While surveillance testing of inmates has been ongoing, mass testing of all inmates is currently underway.” Rehwaldt said testing of all prison staff will be conducted again early next week. “It is important that Del Norte County citizens continue to be vigilant in doing what they can to prevent the spread of this virus. Proper hand hygiene, masking and social distancing are all important in ensuring that we slow the spread so that our limited local resources are not overwhelmed with the consequences of a large outbreak,” he said. CDCR continues to report staff

and inmate cases of COVID-19 on its website; as of early Thursday morning, the deadline for this print edition, the data for PBSP had not been updated. To check for updates, go to cdcr.ca.gov, then click on the COVID-19 banner at the top of the page. Daily updates The Triplicate posts a daily update about COVID-19 on its website, triplicate.com, at 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. The latest information about the virus in Del Norte County prior to this print deadline on Thursday morning was: Cases New confirmed COVID-19 cases: 11 Current Hospitalizations: 0 Total tests: 3386 Total confirmed cases: 79 Total active cases: 17 Total inactive cases: 62 Total hospitalizations: 2 Total deaths: 0 Transmission Contact to a Known Case: 48 cases (61%) Travel-Acquired: 2 cases (2%) Community Transmission: 29 cases (37%) Under Investigation: 0 cases (0%) Gender Males: 44 cases (56%) Females: 35 cases (44%) Age Range 0-17 years: 17 cases (22%) 18-49 years: 46 cases (58%) 50-64 years: 12 cases (15%) 65+ years: 4 cases (5%) Other Data Mean Age: 31 Symptomatic Cases: 42 cases (53%) Asymptomatic Cases: 37 cases (47%) Passive Case Finding: 35 cases (44%) Active Case Finding: 44 cases (56%)

Courtesy of CDCR, Pelican Bay State Prison

The first results of staff testing for COVID-19 at Pelican Bay State Prison in Crescent City last week has shown confirmed positive cases among staff living in both Del Norte and Curry counties. Mass testing of inmates is underway and additional staff testing will take place soon.

CIF postpones football, other ‘fall’ sports The Triplicate

In a world turned upside down by COVID-19, there were more disappointments Monday as the California Interscholastic Foundation announced that fall sports will be moved to winter and all high school sports in the state will have compressed schedules in the coming school year because of concerns related to the pandemic. The announcement was made in Sacramento and followed by a notice from North Coast Section Commissioner of Athletics Pat Cruickshank. Cruickshank said the decision and related schedules are “the effort of many individuals and groups that have been charged

with finding solutions to an unprecedented challenge in our lives.” The schedule released by the NCS, which includes Del Norte High School, shows two sports seasons — fall and spring — instead of the typical fall, winter and spring seasons. “The decision was made to condense three seasons of sport into two seasons of sport, primarily to help with the spacing between particular sports and the overlap of certain sports between seasons,” Cruickshank said. However, “fall sports” will begin the first day of football practice on Dec. 14 and the championship games wrapping up in mid-April. Volleyball and cross country practice will begin

on the same day and wrap up with championship events in late March. At Del Norte High School, student athletes have been preparing for the upcoming school year. The football, girls tennis, girls and boys soccer, volleyball and cross country seasons were to start Aug. 10. Now soccer, basketball, wrestling, tennis, baseball, softball and track will be considered “spring” sports for the coming year. The complete schedule for the NCS is available online included as a PDF with this article. Del Norte Unified School District Superintendent Jeff Harris Please see Sports, Page A3

Changing rules complicate back-to-school planning By David Hayes The Triplicate

David Hayes, The Triplicate

Julie Solus (left) and Cindy Hoffman sit on the back patio at Enoteca for lunch July 22 while the governor’s ban on dine-in options is in place to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.

City approves outdoor dining By David Hayes The Triplicate

In the wake of the governor’s orders July 13 to close restaurants in response to the spread of COVID-19, Crescent City is allowing the use nearby outdoor public and private spaces to serve customers. The City Council unanimously approved a resolution Monday granting encroachment permits for businesses to use public property or their own parking lots for outdoor dining. While the permits have no fees attached, according to the city’s staff report, they do require restaurants to comply with disability laws and local and statewide health regulations. Crescent City Mayor Blake Inscore pointed out the lack of a fee schedule, saying he’d be opposed to charging a fee. “It’s hard enough doing

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business right now,” Inscore said. “There shouldn’t be a fee for this in my opinion.” City Attorney Martha Rice told the city council the permit also indemnifies the city, securing it against legal liability. “They are stating they understand this is a temporary and revocable grant of use,” Rice said. “It’s not a lease or some kind of semi-permanent right. This is temporary to address the situation we’re currently under.” Rice added to acquire an outdoor dining permit, businesses have to take several steps: • Submit a site plan, which includes a layout of their tables. • Add the city to their liability insurance. • Comply with the same disability laws and local and state health regulations. • Agree to hold the city harmless. Although he voted for the new

permits, Councilor Alex Fallman wondered if they should be required. “I feel like businesses are trying to exempt themselves from some kind of COVID-specific things, whether it’s making sure their employees don’t have to wear masks, or something along those lines,” Fallman said. “I just don’t want businesses or restaurants to give us the finger and say, ‘We’re going to ignore this.’ So, are there punishments if businesses do these activities and don’t have this applied for and how is that enforced?” Rice replied that if a restaurant used a public right-of-way and didn’t following public health orders, the city could enforce that through the police department since they’d be trespassing. “As far as revoking the agreement, if they’re refusing to follow public health orders, that’s the other tool,” Rice explained. “If they’re

Just weeks before school is to start in Del Norte County Aug. 24, a group of educators from Del Norte and Humboldt counties penned an open letter July 21 to the community expressing their concerns. One of the signatories, Del Norte Teachers Association President Marshal Jones, summarized the letter’s message. “The key take-away is we need to ensure if in fact students and staff are coming back to the classroom, above all, safety needs to be the most import thing to decide,” Jones told The Triplicate. Among the health and safety measures the letter demands be in place to restart in-person schooling include: • Reduced student class size cohorts • Social/physical distancing at all times and limited interactions

of people at school sites • Hand washing stations • Essential protective equipment • COVID-19 testing available for students and educators The letter’s authors called for continued discussions including educators, administrators and parents to develop an optimal learning environment. “Providing a one-size-fits all plan will not ensure equitable access but will only serve to leave some students further behind,” the letter states. “We call for plans to have multiple options that allow academic and social-emotional growth for all students.” Del Norte Unified School District Superintendent Jeff Harris said he was aware of the letter, acknowledging it contained a lot of concerns expressed and the administration fully understands those concerns. Please see School, Page A3

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Don’t forget your masks and social distancing!

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