Klamath County anticipates move back to Extreme Risk status
Klamath County Public Health said Monday that it will likely be moved all the way up to Oregon s highest level of COVID-19 restrictions effective Friday.
Posted: Apr 5, 2021 4:30 PM
Updated: Apr 5, 2021 4:32 PM
Posted By: Jamie Parfitt
KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. Klamath County will likely shoot back up to Extreme Risk coronavirus restrictions on Friday after several weeks of climbing cases, according to public health officials.
Klamath County Public Health said that the county saw 109 new cases over the previous week, adding 13 cases on Saturday and 30 more by Monday.
With cases rising over the past several weeks, Klamath County was kept on Moderate Risk for an additional two-week pause. But public health officials indicate that cases have continued to spike enough that Klamath County will be placed on Extreme Risk effective Friday, with an official announcement coming on Tuesday.
SOUTHERN Ore.- As the state continues to iron out its vaccination timeline, Counties across the state are also taking steps to keep up with president Biden’s goals. But, according to health officials here, southern Oregon is doing just fine.
“When we look at what the rest of the state is doing, we are right there in the thick of it and, in some instances, out pacing them,” said Valeree Lane with Klamath County Public Health. She says southern Oregon is meeting state and federal vaccination timelines just fine, which isn’t the case in other areas of the state.
Medford motel will be made into emergency housing with Project Turnkey support
Rogue Retreat and the City of Medford are partnering on the new shelter, which will take over the Redwood Inn on Riverside.
Posted: Mar 10, 2021 9:49 AM
Updated: Mar 10, 2021 10:15 AM
Posted By: Jamie Parfitt
MEDFORD, Ore. Southern Oregon will be home to several more emergency shelters for displaced fire victims and the houseless in the coming months, with support from Oregon s Project Turnkey.
In February, the group Options for Helping Residents of Ashland announced that it had been selected to be the first recipient of a Project Turnkey grant. That funding allowed them to acquire the Super 8 motel building at 2350 Ashland Street and begin converting it into a shelter.
Klamath County Public Health spokesperson, Valeree Lane, says the past year has been intense.
She says respecting patient confidentiality was tough at first, because so many people wanted answers about coronavirus. She says every life lost from COVID-19 in the community, 54 of them, this past year will not be forgotten.
“It’s been an interesting year just to see how life has changed. We anticipate this week we’ll be moved from ‘high risk’ to ‘moderate risk’, but there’s not much change with how we interact with each other,” said Lane.
She says everyday of the pandemic has been a battle, but she appreciates the community for doing their part in preventing spread of the virus.