(Shared by Umatilla County Commissioner George Murdock.)
Note: I am leaving Pendleton to attend the annual conference of the National Association of Counties. My primary motivation is that I serve as president-elect of the Oregon Association of Counties, am vice-chair of the Immigration Task Force, and also serve on the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Steering Committee. Since I will not be returning until July 14, there will be no Weekly Update next week. Our conference this year is being held at National Harbor a short distance from Washington, DC. It was originally slated for Austin, Texas but was moved. They expect about one third or one fourth of the normal attendees.
Of note is the fact that during the conference we will be addressed by Vice-President Kamala Harris and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi among others.
I have not flown for two years so this will be an interesting experience to which I am looking forward with very mixed emotions.
To: Public Officials
From: George Murdock
Subject: Weekly Public Officials Update – Providing Information, Advocacy and Commentary
Date: July 6, 2021 – Volume 63
Total Cases – 8,719
Deaths – 87
Recent Counts:
Week 1 – 333
Week 2 – 237
Week 3 – 155
Week 4 – 96
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Week 23 – 435 – (including 170 at EOCI & TRCI)
Week 24 – 466 (including 198 at EOCI & TRCI
Week 25 – 456 (including 154 at EOCI & TRCI)
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Week 44 – 66
Week 45 – 49
Week 46 — 41
Week 47 – 76
Week 48 – 56
Week 49 — 72
Vaccinations Last Week – 365 (Note – this is an undercount since OHA has not provided any updates since July 2)
Medical Report
Our count for last week came in at 72 which reflects the fact the County is going in the wrong direction and which also serves as a reminder that the pandemic will remain active due to our large population of unvaccinated residents. This reflects an increase in a week where Oregon’s numbers continued to decline.
Fires & Heat
Last Minute Update – This morning Darcy Weseman, spokesperson for the U. S. Forest Service, reported there were no fires in Umatilla County. While there may have been spot fires outside of the National Forests, we commend the citizens of Umatilla County for their impressive efforts to adhere to regulations and help prevent what could have been a serious catastrophe.
At the very same time we were getting the green light on opening, we were met with yet another crisis – extreme heat and fire danger that continues to persist. We were holding our breath over the long weekend regarding fires and it would appear we dodged the bullet.
At last count, nearly 100 Oregon residents have died from the heat. One of those deaths occurred in Umatilla County, a 47-year old construction worker from the Spokane area who was living in a trailer which overheated, according to our medical examiner, Dr. Aimee Rogers.
Most of the deaths occurred in the Metro area. We are surmising the limited number of victims in Eastern Oregon can be attributed to the fact we are more accustomed to extreme heat. In Eastern Oregon we see temperatures over 100 pretty regularly but generally not as high at 115 or more. As a result air conditioning is much more prevalent as well as knowledge of what to do under such conditions.
On June 30, commissioners held a special meeting to ban fireworks in the county outside of incorporated areas and outside the boundaries of the Reservation. Later that day Pendleton followed suit as did Milton-Freewater. Fireworks are already banned on the Reservation. While there were certainly people disappointed by the ban, all three commissioners received more E-Mail, phone calls, and comment about the action (in favor) than on any previous recent decision.
At the same time we issued the fireworks ban, we reaffirmed regulations regarding the use of ATV’s and penalties that could result from a violation and the expanded presence of Sheriff’s deputies focused on enforcement of both actions.
A thunderstorm and lightening last Wednesday night ignited 23 fires according to Darcy Weseman, spokesperson for the Forest Service. It appears control is going well. Her report included Pendleton, John Day, La Grande, and Baker City.
Meanwhile we received word from Umatilla National Forest leadership indicating their strong support for the fireworks ban and reminders about ATVs. While the actions excluded the Reservation and incorporated towns, they do include the National Forests and BLM properties.
All three commissioners remained in the county over the long weekend in the fervent hope that in the end they would end up about as busy as the proverbial Maytag repairman. And, as luck would have it, that was pretty much the story.
Current Status of COVID in Umatilla County
If some of the information being provided looks familiar, this is information I provided to EO Reporter Antonio Serra on Friday when he asked about the current status of COVID going forward. I realize that not all of you are privy to the EO. Generally, I think that everyone is so darned happy to have Oregon open, the fact COVID is no less present than it was a week ago, is being overlooked.
It is important to remember the Governor’s emergency order remains in place until December 31 and things could change in Oregon if serious problems emerge.
- We have predicted that COVID numbers would continue to be high in Umatilla County based upon the fact we have more vulnerable people per capita than most counties in Oregon. I think one day last week we were even higher than Multnomah County.
- According to the latest CDC statistics, about 50.2% of those over 12 are vaccinated and 80% of those over 65 are vaccinated. Obviously this means half of our citizens remain at risk.
- It is important to remember that opening Oregon does not reduce the risk to those who are not vaccinated. In fact, it increases the risk as people mingle, gather, and move about more freely.
- The whole matter is very frustrating because we believe there remains a serious risk and yet we need to respect the fact this is an individual choice. In the end, there is basically little the County can do about the problem except continue to spread the message and assure that vaccines are readily available all over the county – which they have been for months and we can’t remember the last time we had a supply shortage.
- Anyone who has read about the Delta variant knows the risk to the unvaccinated. The concern is obviously greatest in countries experiencing vaccine shortages or a lack of access to the vaccine. This is obviously not a problem in the United States.
- The County is continuing its community rewards program in order to encourage local communities to pursue a higher percentage of residents who are vaccinated. Information is available on the UCo Health website.
- We are, however, happy for those businesses which have suffered mightily during the past eighteen months. We also just feel happy in general that people can move about more freely while at the same time we expect there will be a likelihood to maintain some of the precautions we can come to use automatically. Many of them have become habits.
Having mentioned the Delta variant, the New York Times reports it is driving some countries to return to lockdowns. The Times also reported the Delta Variant is now responsible for one in four infections in the United States.
And, from The Scientific American, “The Delta variant is here. First identified in India, this more transmissible form of the novel coronavirus has spread to at least 77 countries and regions and now makes up more than 20 percent of all U.S. cases. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified it as a “variant of concern.” If vaccination rates fail to keep pace with its spread, experts say, the variant could lead to new COVID surges in parts of the country where a substantial proportion of the population remains unvaccinated.”
More from the Legislature
Although we have the good news in hand regarding legislative decisions, we don’t yet have the money. In conversations with the Governor’s Office we were advised the bills will be signed sometime this month but no distributions can be made until the appropriate signatures can be attached.
Early reports coming out of Salem as the smoke clears is that everyone is stepping back for a respite and then will dig in to the task of figuring out just exactly what they have done. They know they have created a very large budget and enacted a host of other legislation, but they are just now getting a handle on the magnitude of their accomplishments.
We are well aware of most of the fiscal issues because they are pretty straight-forward but there was other action related to police reform, equity, the environment, public health, mental health, and other topics. We don’t know much about what that looks like or how it will impact Umatilla County and our communities. We do know a little more about Community Corrections and the impact. Director Dale Primmer maintained active service levels during COVID and since allocations are based upon case count, Umatilla County picked up some headway – perhaps as much as several hundred thousands of dollars for the next biennium.
If You’ve Ever Wondered Why I Don’t Write Much about Technology
A couple of weeks ago we attended a wedding on the Karl Jensen Ranch in Albee. One of the bridesmaids was Karl’s 13-year old niece from Klamath Falls. One of my grandsons (who will remain anonymous so that we can remain friends) and who turned 14 last week, was taken by this young lady. I will say that like his grandfather, he has a good eye.
The latter comment is coming from someone who will celebrate his 48th wedding anniversary in November.
As the reception wore on, they somehow became acquainted with one another – a painful process when you are in your early teens. Once they struggled past the elements of that painful process, they pretty much danced the night away or whatever it is that teenagers do on the dance floor.
Noting the distance between Echo and Klamath Falls, I knowingly suggested they could become pen pals which I thought was a keen and innovative idea. I can remember that in my youth I had a pen pal in Scotland and that sometimes our classes would write to kids in other countries.
This led to a revelation they had already visited on something called Snapchat and that they were involved in some sort of thread or on-going conversation. It is no wonder the U.S. Postal Service is struggling for survival.
And to be perfectly honest, the only reason I currently collect stamps is because I rarely use up my own supply.
