Humboldt County Joint Information Center press release:
Public Health is modifying the contact investigation process and asking for the community’s assistance in order to better respond to an unprecedented surge in COVID-19 cases.
Contact tracers will continue to reach out to each county resident who tests positive and will conduct an initial interview. The investigator will assign the case as either “priority” or “low-risk.” Some examples of priority cases include health care workers in hospitals or clinical settings, staff in school or daycares and those who reside or work in congregate living facilities, but priority will be assigned on a case-by-case basis.
Humboldt County Health Officer Dr. Teresa Frankovich said, “We are at a point where we need the community to assist us in quickly reaching their close contacts in order to help contain spread of the virus.”
If a case is designated as priority, case investigators will be assigned to follow up directly with their close contacts. If a case is designated lower-risk, the contact investigation team will ask that individual to reach out to their own close contacts right away to notify them of the exposure and forward information on quarantine.
A close contact is defined as:
Anyone who was within six feet of a COVID-positive person for 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour timeframe during the infectious period.
A person’s infectious period is:
Two days before the onset of symptoms until it has been at least 10 days since symptoms began; AND
No fever for at least 24 hours; AND
Symptoms have improved.
For positive individuals who do not have symptoms, the infectious period begins two days before the test and continues for 10 days. Dr. Frankovich said it is no longer practical for case investigators to reach out to all contacts of a known positive. “We reported 56 new cases since Friday alone, and last week the county saw its largest weekly case increase since the beginning of the pandemic,” she said. “It’s clear that it’s time to adjust our strategy as much of the state has already had to do.”
Read more about what to do while waiting for your test results, and access information on isolation and quarantine at humboldtgov.org/blanketorders.
The California State University has asked Humboldt State University to undertake a self-study toward becoming designated a polytechnic.
The request offers the momentous possibility of HSU becoming one of just three polytechnic universities in the state, and the only one in Northern California. It would better position HSU to meet specific workforce needs on the North Coast and statewide, and it would significantly raise HSU’s profile among prospective students and grant-funding organizations.
HSU President Tom Jackson, Jr. shared his enthusiasm for the request in a message to campus today, calling it an “incredible, transformative opportunity.”
“This is our moment. First, let’s allow ourselves to imagine, dream, and consider Humboldt as a polytechnic,” Jackson wrote. “What are the possibilities for this region and future students? What are the possibilities for new grants and research?”
The CSU request came in a recent letter from Chancellor Timothy White. The Chancellor wrote, in part: “Humboldt State University is a vital institution on the North Coast and for California. The campus currently has many distinct strengths in the sciences, with a special capacity for matters pertaining to forestry, oceanography, energy, and agriculture. As we look to the needs of California in the decades ahead, programs dealing with the development and application of new knowledge in the fire sciences, aquaculture, sustainable energy, north coast crops, and environmental sustainability are among a few areas where HSU could provide world-class programs.”
Although it is Fall Break, HSU is sharing it as soon as possible with the campus and community.
Polytechnic institutions traditionally feature hands-on and career-focused programs, an emphasis in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) and applied science programs like health and agriculture, along with a strong liberal arts foundation.
In the requested self-study, HSU will have a chance to build upon the collective vision from its academic and strategic planning to reimagine the polytechnic for the 21st Century. It could incorporate Humboldt State’s broad expertise in sustainability, along with areas like traditional ecological knowledge, renewable technologies, equitable and ethical practices, tribal and rural community development, and more.
“I am excited for the possibilities that HSU becoming a polytechnic CSU represents for our region,” said Keith Flamer, President of College of the Redwoods. “This will allow CR and HSU to expand the transfer pathway in the science, technology, engineering, mathematics, forestry and aquaculture fields. CR’s administration and faculty are committed to working with our Humboldt State University partners to build a pathway from our high quality STEM related programs to HSU. It is a ‘win-win’ collaboration.”
In many ways, HSU is the obvious candidate to become the state’s third polytechnic. HSU has the highest percentage of courses with a hands-on component in the CSU, and it has the third highest percentage of students in natural resources and STEM programs (behind Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and Cal Poly Pomona). HSU also has the CSU’s highest percentage of STEM graduates who go on to earn doctoral degrees, ranking 8th nationally among 660 master’s level institutions.
The self-study on the polytechnic concept, to be completed by Spring 2021, will be led by HSU Provost Jenn Capps and Lisa Bond-Maupin, currently serving as Interim Deputy Chief of Staff and Special Assistant to the President. It will build upon numerous important planning efforts currently underway at HSU, including the Strategic Plan process, Academic Road Map planning process, preparation for upcoming WSCUC accreditation visits, and others.
Humboldt Bay Fire announces that two of our firefighters have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus. We
are doing everything we can to provide support to these firefighters and their families. Both are recovering
well and currently isolated at home. We recognize the seriousness of this development and are
committed to doing all that we can to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in Humboldt County.
The exact location and origin of exposure remains under investigation. However, contact tracing is
occurring, all on-duty personnel potentially exposed have been tested, and our stations have been
professionally deep cleaned. Serial tracing for those exposed will continue through this week, and HBF is
now certified to perform in-house testing in conjunction with Humboldt County Public Health Lab.
This news should not deter the public from calling 9-1-1 for emergency assistance. Humboldt Bay Fire,
law enforcement, and EMS services continue to take extensive precautions to safeguard fellow first
responders and the public with whom we interact.
“As we battle COVID-19 in our community, we do so with the understanding of the inherent risk to our
personnel as we respond to the needs of those we serve,” Fire Chief Sean Robertson said. “We continue
to monitor the situation with the health of our firefighters foremost in our minds.
We ask that you respect the privacy of our personnel at this time, and understand that the department will
not be releasing the identity or medical condition of the affected personnel.
For the latest information on COVD-19 in Humboldt, please contact the Humboldt County Joint
Information Center at 707-441-5000 or covidinfo@co.humboldt.ca.us.
If you happen to glance lots of smoke rising from somewhere near McKinleyville today, it is likely not cause for alarm. Green Diamond explains in the press blurb below:
Green Diamond is planning to conduct fuel hazard reduction burning this afternoon in the lower Little River drainage north of McKinleyville and east of Moonstone beach. The prescribed burning will commence around 2:00 today and should be completed by early evening.
In a politically-charged reversal, General Motors announced today that it has abandoned the Trump administration’s attack on California’s authority to set automobile standards that reduce greenhouse gases.
General Motors chairman and CEO Mary Barra said the company was immediately pulling its support from the Trump administration in court battles against California and environmental groups because it supports President-elect Joe Biden’s plans to expand electrification of cars. Barra called California Gov. Gavin Newsom to inform him of the news.
“Given this shared enthusiasm and the President-elect’s call to bring the country back together, we believe there is now a path to achieve agreement on a national standard and complementary policies to accelerate the electrification of the light-duty transportation sector,” Barra wrote in a letter to major environmental groups.
The announcement comes after a four-year battle over federal rollbacks of Obama-era rules that curb greenhouse gases and smog-forming emissions from cars.
The Trump administration yanked California’s unique authority to set its own, stricter standards for greenhouse gas pollution from vehicles, driving the state and major environmental groups to challenge the rollbacks in court.
Last fall, General Motors, along with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Mazda, Mitsubishi and Toyota, backed the Trump administration in the suit over California’s powers to police tailpipe pollution.
Now, with Biden just months away from entering the White House, automakers are adjusting to the new political reality, said Julia Stein, supervising attorney at UCLA’s Frank G. Wells Environmental Law Clinic.
Stein suspects that the Biden administration will petition to press pause on the lawsuits as it works to roll back the rollbacks. (The Biden-Harris transition team did not respond to a request for comment.)
And in the meantime, Stein sees this letter as a signal that GM wants to come back to the table.
“It seems like a little bit of an olive branch to me,” Stein said. “Like, ‘Okay, we see this is going to be a conversation about what happens next in terms of the fuel economy standards, and we want to be part of that conversation.’”
Barra said in her letter that she hoped other automakers would follow GM’s lead.
“To better foster the necessary dialogue, we are immediately withdrawing from the preemption litigation and inviting other automakers to join us,” Barra wrote.
Other automakers did not take immediate action.
“Given the changing circumstances, we are assessing the situation, but remain committed to our goal of a consistent, unitary set of fuel economy standards applicable in all 50 states,” said Ed Hellwig, a spokesperson for Toyota.
California already has the support of other major manufacturers. In a detour around federal rollbacks, the state cut a deal with BMW of North America (including Rolls Royce), Ford, Honda, Volkswagen Group of America (including Audi) and Volvo. The companies agreed to meet California requirements nationwide for cars and pickup trucks rather than fall in line with new, less-stringent federal tailpipe standards set by the Trump administration.
This story is developing…
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Missing people Traci Bland and Kyle McCartney. | MCSO
Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office press release:
On 11/19/2020 around 12:46 p.m., the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call from the 24400 Block of Oak Lane related to a reported assault and possible kidnapping of missing persons Kyle McCartney, 34 years of age, and Traci Bland, 48 years of age, both residents of the Covelo area.
The reporting party was initially uncooperative but eventually related earlier that day he was taken to an address on Oak Lane by the two missing persons. When they arrived four unknown Hispanic or Native American suspects attacked and assaulted Kyle and Traci. The reporting party indicated he fled and the missing persons where possibly kidnapped and have not been seen since Thursday November 19, after 12:45 p.m. The reporting party thought they were taken from their property in their own vehicle. This vehicle, a 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe (Gold colored) California License #7TZZ158, was later located, abandoned, near another address on Oak Lane. The vehicle had not been there when the Sheriff’s Office responded to that location after receiving the 911 call.
Bland and McCartney’s abandoned Chevrolet Tahoe. | MCSO
At this time the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office is investigating this missing persons incident as a possible kidnapping and assault as neither missing person has been seen since the November 19th incident.
Anyone with information about this incident, the whereabouts of the two missing persons, or the specific movement of the the vehicle shown in the attached photograph to please contact the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office.
The Sheriff’s Office Investigations Unit is interested in the specific time frame of the vehicle movement between 12:45 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. on Thursday the 19th. The vehicle may have frequented the Mendocino Pass Road area as well as other areas in an around the Round Valley area.
The Sheriff’s Office is looking to hear from anyone with specific information related to this case. If you have any information related to this case please call the Sheriff’s Office Communications line at 707-463-4086 or the Tip line at 707-234-2100.
THIS WEEK: Your President of Positivity and her HumBubbles cohorts answer the age old question: Can you blow giant bubbles in the rain? PLUS: A return to the Glass Garage in Eureka to see what marble artist Chad Parker is blowin’ up for this Christmas. You can feel yesterday’s palpable jealousy!
