October 13th COVID-19 and Wildfire Update

Oregon State Legislature sent this bulletin at 10/13/2020 09:16 PM PDT
Michael Dembrow

October 13, 2020

I hope that you and your loved ones are doing well, staying healthy, and looking out for your neighbors and friends in these difficult times.

With an increase in the number of COVID tests reported today and again a positive test number lower than the record numbers that we were seeing last week, today’s statewide COVID positivity rate is under 5%. (Not by much: 4.9%!)  That’s the lowest it’s been in the last couple of weeks.  COVID hospitalization and ICU rates have also gone done.

Sadly, though, OHA tells us of six additional COVID deaths today.  That pushes our state’s death toll above 600 (605 to be exact). 

OHA Director Pat Allen had this to say about this our passing this unhappy threshold: “Today we surpassed 600 reported COVID-19 deaths, marking an unhappy milestone for all Oregonians. At OHA we note each COVID-19 related death with great sadness.  Our thoughts go out to the families and loved ones of those we have lost.

“Each death is a reminder to the rest of us of the severity and danger of COVID-19. Each of us has our own reasons why we take individual COVID-19 prevention steps like wearing a mask, keeping physically distant, and avoiding gatherings, but for most of us, we take these actions to protect our families, friends and neighbors. OHA sends its condolences to every Oregonian who has lost someone to COVID-19.”

You can read about the Oregonians we lost further down in the newsletter. 

Please let me know if you have any questions.

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TODAY’S CORONAVIRUS AND CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE UPDATE

  • Positive Cases: OHA reports that 297 additional Oregonians have tested positive for COVID. The cumulative total since the beginning of the pandemic is 35,878.
  • Total Tests: The number of reported tests has increased by 6,006. The cumulative total is now 749,375.
  • Ratio: The percentage of positive test results for the last three days in Oregon is 4.9%.  The national ratio today is 5.3%.
  • Deaths: I regret to report 6 additional deaths due to the coronavirus today. The total number of COVID deaths in Oregon is at 605.
  • Hospitalized: OHA reports 13 new COVID hospitalizations. The cumulative number of those who have been hospitalized with COVID since the beginning of the pandemic is now 2,804 2,817.
  • Presumptive Cases: OHA is including “presumptive COVID-19 cases” in its daily reports, consistent with recently amended guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A presumptive case is someone who does not yet have a positive PCR test but is showing symptoms and has had close contact with a confirmed case. If they later test positive by PCR, those will be recategorized as confirmed cases.  OHA reports 24 new cases presumed positive for COVID-19.  The cumulative number of presumed positives is 1,902.
  • Other Hospital Information:
    • Patients Currently with COVID-19 Symptoms (who may or may not have received a positive test result yet): 210 (10 fewer than yesterday). Of those, 156 have already received a positive test back.
    • Available ICU Beds: 161 (1 fewer than yesterday)
    • Other Available Beds: 628 (15 fewer than yesterday).
    • ICU Patients w COVID-19 Symptoms: 47 (8 fewer than yesterday).
    • COVID-19 Patients Currently on Ventilators: 19 (2 fewer than yesterday).
    • Available Ventilators: 790 (15 more than yesterday).
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  • Today’s National Numbers:
  • Additional Brief Updates:
    • The Office of Emergency Management has asked legislators to help get the word out that wildfire survivors who have private insurance on their properties should still register for FEMA individual assistance benefits. FEMA will not cover expenses covered by the insurance, but it may cover other expenses that may be excluded or not covered.  You’ll find details in their press release here in English and here in Spanish.
    • And here’s an article in today’s Statesman-Journal with more information about FEMA’s work so far. 
    • I’ve been asked to provide a link to the report on the survey of Oregonians’ COVID attitudes that OHA commissioned. It’s a snapshot of attitudes from early September and is full of a number of interesting findings.  Here it is.
    • The latest set of county school reopening metrics has just been released. You’ll see the impact of the recent rise in cases. A number of districts that were on the cusp at least to open for K-3 in-person instruction are now looking at a setback.
    • Highway 22 has fully reopened this evening for travel across the Cascades and Santiam Pass, after ODOT has removed more than 30,000 hazard trees on or alongside a 40-mile section of the highway. Drivers should be prepared to give themselves extra time to make the trip, though. Read more about it here.
    • DMV is increasing its ability to schedule appointments for needed services via its new online tool, Oregon.gov. I’ve heard from those that have used it that it’s easy to use, though you still need to schedule appointments pretty far in advance. Once your appointment time comes up, your actual time at DMV will require very little waiting from what I hear.  Here’s more information from DMV.
    • I know that many of you are wondering what this year’s Halloween is going to look like. If my neighborhood is an example, people are decorating their homes as much as normal.  But how about Trick-or-Treating?  Halloween parties?  What is considered safe to do during a pandemic.  Well, OHA is holding a Facebook Live tomorrow (Wednesday) at noon with experts to answer your questions.  It takes place on OHA’s Facebook page and OHA en Español. You can sign up for a reminder, watch live tomorrow or check out the recorded version later.
    • The Legislature’s Emergency Board met yesterday and approved the allocations that were on the agenda, which I described in Saturday’s newsletter. You can watch the E-Board meeting and/or read the materials and reports here.  As I mentioned, $20 million is being set aside to help schools damaged by wildfire and wildfire smoke, but districts will need to come to the Legislative Fiscal Office with clear requests before sums are distributed.  To that end, the E-Board will likely be meeting again next Monday to deal with that and to take further steps regarding emergency housing. 

Tuesday Wildfire Update

Below again are two tables that reveal the progress made in containment of the six remaining major fires over the last 24 hours.  You’ll notice increases in containment at the Beachie Creek Fire and the Slater Fire.

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Again, for maps and up-to-the-minute details on the individual fires, I’d direct you to OEM’s State of Oregon Fires and Hotspots Dashboard.

You can find an up-to-the-moment status report on road closures from ODOT’s Trip Check tool.

Wildfire Impact/Recovery Updates

Oregon Emergency Management is now releasing updates only on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.  Here again are the highlights from yesterday’s update:

  • The number of fatalities (9) and missing persons (1) remains the same.
  • The number of residences destroyed is now 3,992. More than 1,400 structures other than residences have also been destroyed.
  • A total of 10,849 Oregonians have now registered with FEMA for individual assistance (an increase of more than a thousand over the weekend), currently approved for $17.4 million.
  • Again, if you know of anyone who has NOT yet registered, please direct them to the following:

Wildfire Informational Resources

Where Are Today’s New Cases?

If we put together the positive test results and new “presumptive” cases reported today, the overall number of new cases is 321.  Here is the breakdown by county for today:

Benton (10)

Clackamas (37)

Clatsop (5)

Columbia (1)

Crook (1)

Deschutes (2)

Douglas (1)

Jackson (13)

Jefferson (1)

Josephine (3)

Klamath (5)

Lake (1)

Lane (39)

Linn (20)

Malheur (14)

Marion (35)

Multnomah (45)

Polk (3)

Tillamook (1)

Umatilla (11)

Union (2)

Wasco (1)

Washington (50)

Yamhill (11)

And the Deaths

Oregon’s 600th COVID-19 death is an 83-year-old man in Yamhill County who tested positive on Sept. 21 and died on Oct. 5 in his residence.

Oregon’s 601st COVID-19 death is an 89-year-old man in Multnomah County who tested positive on Sept. 30 and died on Oct. 12 at Adventis Health Portland.

Oregon’s 602nd COVID-19 death is a 75-year-old woman in Marion County who tested positive on Oct. 1 and died on Oct. 9 in her residence.

Oregon’s 603rd COVID-19 death is a 90-year-old man in Clackamas County who tested positive on Oct. 10 and died on Oct. 11. Place of death is being confirmed.

Oregon’s 604th COVID-19 death is a 91-year-old man in Malheur County who tested positive on Sept. 7 and died on Sept. 18 in his residence

Oregon’s 605th COVID-19 death is an 81-year-old woman in Multnomah County who tested positive on Oct. 1 and died on Oct. 10 at Providence Portland Medical Center.

Additional Graphs:

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Want to See Past Newsletters?

If there was COVID-related information in a past newsletter that you want to go back to, but find you’ve deleted it, you can always go to my legislative website (senatordembrow.com), click on “News and Information,” and you’ll find them all there.  Also, if someone forwarded you this newsletter and you’d like to get it directly, you can sign up for it there.

AND FINALLY,

Here again are some resources that you will find useful:

If the above links are not providing you with answers to your questions or directing you to the help that you need, please consider me and my office to be a resource.  We’ll do our best to assist you or steer you in the right direction. 

Best,

dembrow signature

Senator Michael Dembrow
District 23

email: Sen.MichaelDembrow@oregonlegislature.gov
web: www.senatordembrow.com
phone: 503-986-1723
mail: 900 Court St NE, S-407, Salem, OR, 97301