NCJ Daily Online

Public Health Again Urges Masking

Humboldt County Public Health is recommending that everyone once again mask up in public, indoor spaces amid a rise in spread of the Delta variant.

Humboldt now joins 25 other California counties in making the recommendation, while Los Angeles County has gone a step further and re-imposed its mask mandate as it faces renewed concerns about hospital capacity.

Locally, Humboldt County is in the midst of its worst period of virus spread since the post-holiday surge in January amid a surge in cases attributed to the more contagious Delta variant. As the Journal went to press, the county had confirmed 192 cases with a test-positivity rate of 12.7 percent — both among the worst in the state. Further, the county reported July 26 that of the 193 cases confirmed over the prior seven days, 24 were in children under the age of 10 while four of nine hospitalizations over the same span were of people age 60 or younger.

Humboldt County implemented an order mandating the wearing of facial coverings in public indoor spaces or outdoors in situations in which social distancing was not possible back in April of 2020, before the state followed suit, but lifted the mandate along with the rest of the state last month.

The press release announcing the masking recommendation describes it as “an extra precautionary measure” for those who are fully vaccinated, one that also “ensures easy verification that all unvaccinated people are masked in those settings,” as is still required by the state.

“We still have many unvaccinated people in our community who are vulnerable to serious illness from this virus,” Health Director Sofia Pereira said in a press release, referring to the 45 percent of local residents who remain unvaccinated. “Masking is a reasonable precaution we can all take in light of our recent case rate increase and the rise of the Delta variant.”

The county’s press release also encourages businesses to adopt universal masking practices for customers in indoor areas.

“We’ve all sacrificed to get to a point where vaccine is widely available, and our

Vaccinations Required

File Photo The California State University system announced July 27 that all of its campuses — including Humboldt State University, pictured above — will require faculty, staff and students who are accessing campuses to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19. Read more at www.northcoastjournal.com. POSTED 07.27.21

gains in containing this pandemic have been hard won, so we don’t make this recommendation lightly,” Health Officer Ian Hoffman said in the release.

Meanwhile, vaccination appointments remain open at a series of upcoming clinics — including ones July 29 and July 30 in Eureka, and July 31 in Arcata. Walk-ins are welcome, but appointments can be made in advance at www.myturn.ca.gov.

— Thadeus Greenson POSTED 07.24.21 Read the full story online.

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Spartans Return: The San Jose State University football team is heading back to Humboldt to prepare for its upcoming season. According to a Humboldt State University news release, all of the athletes, staff and coaches are fully vaccinated and will follow “general safety practices” while living and practicing on campus.

POSTED 07.27.21

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Drowning Investigations: The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a pair of unrelated drowning deaths — that of a 57-year-old man in the Eel River near Holmes Flat on July 26 and that of a 22-year-old Arcata woman in the Trinity River near Kimtu Beach on July 23 — while urging residents to take safety precautions. POSTED 07.26.21

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Toxic Algae Warning: Humboldt County Public Health officials are warning local residents to be on the lookout for harmful algal blooms after a person fell ill after spending time in the South Fork Eel River north of Weott and a dog reportedly died after algae exposure on the Trinity River east of Willow Creek.

POSTED 07.23.21

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Digitally Speaking

The percent of the country’s spring wheat production grown in an area experiencing drought conditions, according to a July 6 report from the USDA, which is contributing to rising bread prices. POSTED 07.21.21

They Said It

“Last night was about as exciting as it gets in any baseball game.”

— Crabs manager Robin Guier of the Crabs’ July 24 win, which involved a comeback and a walk-off hit. Read the full rundown at www.northcoastjournal.com.

POSTED 07.21.21

Comment of the Week

“I’m gonna start double masking in Walmart again.”

— Nathan Rex commenting on the Journal’s Facebook page on a story reporting July 26 that Humboldt County Public Health had confirmed 74 new cases since July 23 with a test-positivity rate of 9.7 percent.

POSTED 07.26.21