New Scams Hit Area
There have been a multitude of calls coming in in the Florence area regarding scams. One of the latest is someone pretending to be from the office of homeland security. There have also been robo calls from the IRS and Social Security. Florence Police commander John Pitcher says if someone has concerns about the validity of a call, to call the non-emergency number of the Florence police before responding to any of the calls. Along with that Oregon Pacific Bank has sent out a notice that the department of justice is looking in to scammers that are going door to door pretending to be grand children of elderly residents asking for cash to help them avoid an emergency situation like a hospital bill or needing to leave the country. The Oregon DOJ and the Florence police agree that you should not act immediately now matter how dramatic the situation seems. The recommend checking out the story with other relatives even if you have been told to keep it secret. If the situation originates from a call, do not send cash, gift cards or money transfers and never open the door for someone you do not know.
Vaccination Milestone
The Oregon health Authority has reported that 1 million Oregonians have now received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. 62% of Oregonians 65 and older have been fully vaccinated and one in five eligible have received at least one dose. The state has enrolled almost 1,300 providers to administer the vaccine. If you are in the 45-64 age group with an underlying health condition, these are the instances where you would be eligible to receive the vaccine: those with cancer, chronic kidney disease, COPD, Down syndrome, Heart disease, immunocompromised due to organ transplant or HIV, sickle cell disease, diabetes, obesity, and those who are 16 and older that are pregnant.
Lane County Gets Approval to Expand Vaccinations
Lane County has been added to the list of counties that are being allowed to expand vaccinations to the newly updated list of eligible individuals. That word came down yesterday from the OHA. Start date for the expanded group begins on March 29.
New COVID-19 Numbers
Lane County added another 26 individuals to the COVID-19 list yesterday, but the numbers for Florence remain the same at 180. The county has now seen 10,633 cases of the virus since the beginning of the pandemic.
Water Break Repaired
The city of Reedsport has repaired a water line that broke between the city and Winchester Bay. For about 24 hours residents north of Reedsport experienced low water pressure due to a mainline break. Reedsport Public works director Kim Clardy did not say what caused the break.
