Page 18 - Mid Valley Times 10-29-20 E-edition

COVID-19 Continued from page A1
County reported 30,969 positive cases — 10,477 of them active — out of 352,820 tests for 8.9 per- cent. The overall death toll increased to 439, up nine for the week, but hospitalizations reduced to 95 after a brief spike early in the week.
Reedley's cases still topped county cities in Mid Valley Times cov- erage areas with 1,452, with active or under in- vestigation cases rising to 476. Nicole Zieba, city manager, said at the Oct. 27 council that the city's overall positive numbers had generally flattened in the past month. While there were no deaths for two or three weeks, the city's total number of COVID-related deaths was 31, most in senior
IMMANUEL Continued from page A1
But for the rest of the 2020-21 academic year – re- gardless of the COVID-19 sta- tus affecting Fresno County and California — the private school district will be free from any more punitive ac- tion from the county or state. The Oct. 14 tentative agree- ment allows the schools to continue on-campus instruc- tion while following COVID guidelines instituted by the county including masks, physical distancing in class- rooms and other preventive measures.
"We've been battling for weeks now for a good cause. But to finally get to a settle- ment that we are happy with is great," Immanuel Schools
than 16,800 had recov- ered, a 95 percent rate.
Dinuba reached the 1,900 total case mark as of Oct. 27, 54 coming in the last three weeks. The patient count remained steady at 68 in Dinuba Healthcare, and 600 in all county skilled nurs- ing facilities. Orosi and Cutler both saw reduc- tion or leveling off of active cases in the past three weeks.
Cities continued to adjust normal routines because of COVID, but also had revised plans for fall events. In Reed- ley, the annual Electri- cal Christmas Parade in December has been switched to Saturday, Nov. 28. Like the recent Reedley Fiesta Parade, this parade will be a re- verse format — with ve- hicles driving along G Street to pass and view
facilities or hospice. Sanger was next with 1,441 positive cases, 30 more than at the start of the week. But active or under investigation cases grew only by six for the week. Active cases for the week grew by six in Parlier, eight in Orange Cove, three in Del Rey and two in Squaw Valley. Fowler reported a sharp increase of 17 active cases between the Oct.
22 and Oct. 27 reports. Tulare County re- mained in the purple widespread category, seeing its active cases rise by 26 in just by day after a weekend of declines. Overall cases were at 17,678 (582 as of Oct. 27) with 288 deaths (up nine for the week). The county still had rel- atively low hospitaliza- tions with 27, five in in- tensive care. Just more
several Christmas light displays.
The annual tree light- ing ceremony will be held that night, but for this year the tree will be displayed in Pioneer Park because of the re-
verse parade route. Lo- cal businesses and com- munity organizations will create light displays and wave to the public as they drive by.
Restaurants and ca- fes in downtown Reed-
ley also continued utiliz- ing "parklets" — outdoor dining areas temporar- ily built over parking spaces in front of each restaurant. The move has proved popular with many in the city.
Thursday, October 29, 2020
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Mid Valley TiMes
As of 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 27, there had been 30,969 confirmed cases (10,477 active) of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) out of 352,820 tests (8.9 percent) in Fresno County, with 439 deaths and 95 currently hospitalized. Among Mid Valley Times cities, Reedley leads the way with the most positive cases at 1,452 (476 active or under investigation) while Sanger is at 1,441 cases (444 active or under investigation); Parlier was listed with 1,131 cases (366) and Orange Cove had 691 cases (232). Del Rey was at 125 cases while Fowler had 268 cases. Squaw Valley and Dunlap had 20 and six total positive
cases, respectively. The county reported that 20,110 of the positive cases (65.1 percent) had recovered.
In Tulare County, there were 17,678 total confirmed cases (582 active) of COVID-19 with 288 deaths and 27 hospitalized as of midday on Tuesday, Oct. 27. Breakdowns by cities/regions show 1,900 cases in Dinuba, 650 in Orosi, 373 in Cutler, 90 in Traver, 14 in the rural area south of Reedley and four in the rural area southeast of Orange Cove.
A total of 16,808 people (95 percent) had recovered from the virus in Tulare County.
COVID-19 update
Superintendent Ryan Wood said in an Oct. 20 interview with The Times. "For the county and the state to be willing and enter into negotia- tions — and they actually did reach out to us — we were very thankful for that, it was very unexpected.
"We entered in good faith that we could find an agree- ment, but we were a ways apart. We weren't trying to be stubborn, we just didn't know what we wanted to do. But it did allow us to talk through, it allowed us to process things that they were struggling with."
The Oct. 14 agreement signed by the district, county and state tentatively agreed that the school would avoid fi- nancial fines. But discretion was left to Superior Court Judge Tyler Tharpe, who on
Oct. 20 issued a $50,000 sanc- tion against the school.
However, Wood said that $35,000 of that sanction was waived, with the school being fined for only 10 days of in- struction that began back on Aug. 13.
"There were just a few things that we didn't want to have to negotiate on, and that's where we feel like they came our way," Wood said of the county's opening to a settlement. "We feel we went their way, especially with the masks. That was a hard decision to make. Because we think about the herd im- munity, which we believe we have."
Immanuel's decision to open campus to live instruc- tion was based on its "herd immunity" argument. Blood testing in early August by a
Clovis pathologist, Dr. Paul Atmajian, showed that near- ly 60 percent of Immanuel students had COVID-19 an- tibodies after apparently be- ing sickened in January and February. This was a month before the first reported CO- VID-19 positive test in Fresno County.
"Just because we diag- nosed our first [case] March 7, that doesn't mean it wasn't here," Wood said. "In Janu- ary and February — and we proved it with an absence re- port from last year — we had more kids absent than I've ever seen, and I've been here 25 years."
Wood said the county not agreeing with Atmajian's testing was the most frustrat- ing part of the school's stand.
"We have an above-the- board, well-documented,
well-schooled, credentialed doctor who did an antibody test for free antigens – not one, but three," he said. "And then scientifically proven — the blood never lies — that proved we had herd immu- nity at 60 percent for two of three and 80 percent for just one, which is what the state of California asks for. For them not to recognize that, that has been frustrating."
But in the end, the agree- ment was reached. Wood said the school now can get back to its educational mission.
"We just felt it was safer for us to have school and deal with a COVID case, than it was to keep them home, watching the anxiety and de- pression increase," he said. "We believe it was right, the families believe it was right, and that's all that matters."
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