Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
With active cases of COVID-19 across North Dakota at their lowest level since the start of football season, Gov. Doug Burgum announced Wednesday that the statewide risk level would be adjusted from moderate/yellow risk to low/green risk, effective 8 a.m. Friday, Jan. 29.
The move to green risk level effectively increases the recommended occupancy limit for bars, restaurants and other food service establishments to 80 percent of licensed facility capacity up to 300 patrons, with social distancing. Banquet, ballrooms and event venues are recommended at 75 percent of room capacity, not to exceed the ND Smart Restart capacity limits.
Eddy County saw a slight uptick in numbers this past week, with 13 new cases reported in the span of just two days on Tuesday and Wednesday. Active cases in the county totaled 16 as of Wednesday, a number not seen on any given day since early December. Eddy County residents have been tested a collective 9,249 times since March, and 439 of us have tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 10 months.
Active cases throughout the state hovered just above 1,000 Wednesday, 10% of the more than 10,000 active cases in mid-November. The state’s 14-day positivity rate has decreased to 3.17%, the lowest since Aug. 22. Hospitalizations due to COVID-19 dipped below 50 as of Wednesday, another positive sign.
North Dakota ranked lowest among all U.S. states for test positivity last week, according to a report distributed by the White House, and first among states in percentage of received vaccine doses administered as of Tuesday, at 87% according to the CDC Data Tracker.
More than 80,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccine had been administered in had been administered in the state as of Wednesday, and 340 doses of them were given to Eddy County residents. Nearly 15% of Eddy County residents have received their first dose of the vaccine, slightly more than neighboring Foster County (12%), nearly double that of Wells County (8.6%) and triple Benson County’s rate (5.2%).
New Rockford-Sheyenne School announced Monday that protocols for after school activities had changed. Masks are now only required when visitors are “on the move” in the hallway, cafeteria, restroom, etc. Visitors may remove their masks when seated with family and friends. Parents can also resume meetings to address student needs in-person, with masks required. However, masks are no longer required on the playground, as is the case in the gymnasium during PE classes.
BinaxNOW testing is available for staff when interested, and staff seeking the vaccine will have it available to them as soon as possible.
“We’re grateful to all North Dakotans, including our medical, education and business communities, for their actions that have contributed to these positive results,” Burgum said. “We continue to use a data-driven approach to navigate this pandemic, and all data indicates North Dakota is heading in the right direction.”
For more information on North Dakota’s COVID-19 response, visit http://www.health.nd.gov/coronavirus or http://www.ndresponse.gov.