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HumCo Still in Orange as State Readies to Reopen
Humboldt County Public Health reported nine new COVID-19 cases as the Journal went to press June 8, as well as two new hospitalizations.
“Since the beginning of the pandemic, a total of 192 people have been hospitalized and 46 local residents have died,” a press release states. “None of them were vaccinated.”
The report came after the state announced earlier in the day that Humboldt County remains in its orange or “moderate” risk tier, keeping in place restrictions on local businesses imposed in April.
Public Health is continuing to urge residents to get vaccinated, with clinics scheduled this week at College of the Redwoods in Eureka on June 10 from 2 to 6 p.m. and June 13 from 2 to 5 p.m. Although walk-ins are welcome at Public Health clinics, appointments are highly encouraged. To make an appointment at a clinic or pharmacy, and to request help with transportation, visit www.vaccines.gov.
Public Health also reported last week that the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health approved revisions yesterday to its workplace safety regulations, which apply to most workers in the state. The requirements generally allow workers who are fully vaccinated to work unmasked in settings where everyone else in the workplace is vaccinated and symptom free. They also lift physical distancing requirements in indoor settings after July 31, but require employers to make N95 masks available to any unvaccinated employees.
When the state updated its COVID-19 risk tiers for the last time June 8, it kept Humboldt County in its orange “moderate” tier, allowing local businesses to operate as they have since April until the state eases most restrictions June 15. According to the state’s data, Humboldt County recorded 5.1 new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents and had a test-positivity rate of 3.6 percent over the seven-day period. Humboldt’s numbers dwarf those of the state as a whole, which recorded 2 new COVID-19 case per 100,000 residents and a test-positivity rate of 0.8 percent.
The county’s test positivity rate has gone from 3.6 percent in November, to 7.3 percent in December and 9.9 percent in January, before dropping to 6.5 percent in February. In March, it dropped to 4.5 percent before inching back up to 5.9 percent in April. In May, it jumped to 8.3 percent.
As of June 8, Humboldt County had confirmed 4,390 cases, with 192 hospi-
Peace Paddle
Photo by Mark McKenna Paddle Out for Justice organizer Melissa Meiris addresses a crowd of about 50 surfers and paddlers June 6 before they hit the water on the Samoa Peninsula in a show of support for a range of social justice issues. POSTED 06.07.21
talizations and 46 confirmed COVID-19 related deaths.
The county dashboard listed 4,246 people as having “recovered” from the virus locally, though that just means they are no longer contagious and does not account for long-term health impacts, which local healthcare workers have told the Journal can be substantial, even in previously healthy patients.
Nationwide, more than 33.1 million COVID-19 cases had been confirmed, with 594,802 related deaths, according to the Centers for Disease Control. In California, more than 3.6 million cases had been confirmed with 62,479 deaths, according to the Department of Public Health.
— Thadeus Greenson POSTED 06.08.21 Read the full story online.
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Auditor-Controller Investigation: The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 in a special closed session, with Fifth District Supervisor Steve Madrone dissenting, to hire an independent, third-party to investigate allegations of workplace misconduct and delayed payments by the Auditor-Controller’s Office. The vote came as the board met June 2 to discuss five cases of anticipated litigation or significant exposure to litigation. POSTED 06.03.21
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Free Rapid Testing Kits: Humboldt County Public health recently announced that organizations and businesses are eligible to receive rapid COVID-19 antigen test kits at no cost through the California Testing Task Force. The tests, which give results in 15 to 30 minutes, are most useful for the routine testing of a workforce, entry into a gathering or congregate setting. Read more at www.northcoast-
journal.com. POSTED 06.04.21
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Open Vaccine Appointments: The Humboldt County Joint Information Center is reporting that scores of COVID-19 vaccine appointments remain open throughout the county. The county plans to hold its next clinic at College of the Redwoods from 2 to 6 p.m. on June 10 but residents are encouraged to go to www.vaccines.gov to find open clinic and pharmacy appointments and arrange for transportation, if needed. POSTED 06.08.21
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Digitally Speaking They Said It
The number of local residents who died of COVID-19 over the five-day period before this edition of the
Journal went to press, despite the widespread availability of vaccine locally. POSTED 06.07.21 “Our monitoring traps are full of dead juvenile salmon. The few fish still alive are infected with disease. It’s a catastrophic blow to the fishery and Karuk culture.”
— Toz Soto, fisheries program manager for the Karuk Tribe, in a press release announcing the tribe’s declaration of a climate emergency in the Klamath River
Basin. POSTED 06.01.21
Comment of the Week
“These preventable deaths are heartbreaking.”
— Robyn Moreno on Facebook commenting on a Journal article about Humboldt County recording its 45th COVID-19 death amid a surplus of vaccine locally POSTED 06.04.21
