Highest Weekend Case Count in Florence
There were a total of 9 new cases of COVID-19 reported in Florence over the weekend. Coast Radio has reached out to Lane County Public Health’s information Liaison Jason Davis for more information on the cases and is awaiting more news from Lane County. 9 is the largest number over a two day period since the beginning of the pandemic. The case count is now 70 for the Florence area. The Oregon Health Authority also released numbers for over the weekend and there were 4,085 new cases reported since Friday morning. There were also 58 more deaths added to the total. Lane County over the same period had 326 new cases. Oregon passed the 100K mark on Friday and there is currently a total of 102,930 known or presumptive cases to date in the state. Lane County’s death toll is at 81 persons and the total number of cases is 6,239. Health officials with OHA are warning that the Christmas Holiday could see some of the largest numbers to date if people do not stay on track with social distancing, mask wearing and hand washing. OHA says now to wear a mask with anyone you do not live with, indoors and out. Meeting outdoors is best, but may require bundling up.
Wind Warning – Few Outages
Despite High wind warnings over the past several days and continuing through today, Central Lincoln PUD is reporting only a few outages in the area. Efforts over the past several weeks to trim back potentially dangers limbs over power lines have apparently helped keep down the number of issues surrounding downed lines. High winds and high water warnings have been out all weekend, with the possibility of flooding, but there have been no reports of any severe conditions. However, several houses along the Siuslaw River in Mapleton did see water rise high enough to reach their homes. High wind warnings continue through 4 pm today.
Coos Bay Highway Project
Beginning January 4th the Oregon Department of Transportation will begin working on a new highway project in Coos Bay. People traveling along the coast should be aware that northbound traffic on First Street and south bound traffic on Broadway will be effected. Most of the work is projected to be done at night, but some lanes will likely be closed during the day according to ODOT. The project is scheduled to be completed by June.
Increased Enforcement Expected
You can expect increased enforcement on the roads over the holiday weekend through the 4th of January. Douglas County Sheriffs and Lincoln County Sheriff’s have released information on increased patrols for DUII and other violations. Lane County has yet to officially announce that they will also be participating, but it is a normal occurrence over holidays so notice of increased enforcement is anticipated.
