Coronavirus updates: Fresno region numbers surge; Madera gets one-hour in-house testing
The United States now has more than 1 million confirmed cases of coronavirus — 1,002,498 as of Tuesday afternoon, Johns Hopkins University reports.
More than 5.6 million have been tested nationally for coronavirus and more than 57,000 confirmed deaths have been reported. The bulk of cases are in New York — 295,106 — followed by New Jersey, Massachusetts, Illinois and California.
The central San Joaquin Valley saw a surge in reported cases for Monday and Tuesday — with 80, then 85 new cases reported. Across Fresno, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced and Tulare counties, there are more than 1,300 cases and 49 deaths attributed to the virus.
Fresno County, which counted 521 cases as of Tuesday afternoon.
Tulare County Health and Human Services added 48 more positive cases in its daily online update Wednesday. The county-wide total now stands at more than 600 people, with an only slightly higher number (635) under self-quarantine and monitored by health officials. The county also confirmed another death related to the coronavirus. So far, 36 people have died after being diagnosed with the virus.
In Tulare County, much of the focus is on a series of outbreaks among residents and workers at skilled nursing facilities. Two of the three coronavirus-related deaths reported in the county on Tuesday were tied to such facilities. Redwood Springs Healthcare Center in Visalia was one of the first facilities in the state to report an outbreak. Twenty-four residents there have since died.
Prioritized, one-hour testing in Madera County
Madera County Department of Public Health on Wednesday announced it now has one-hour testing capabilities.
The county has received its first order of testing cartridges for its GeneXpert molecular testing system, which which will provide results within one hour.
In a news release, the county had been advocating aggressively for the cartridges since mid-March.
“The GeneXpert is our only in-house option for increasing testing. We have been eager to increase our capacity for testing in Madera County but have been unable to use our GeneXpert machine due to the shortage with cartridges. We are excited that our advocacy with state and federal partners has paid off,” stated Public Health Director, Sara Bosse.
Increasing testing is one of the identified requirements laid out by the Governor for counties to reopen.
If running at full capacity, some 44 tests can be run per day, as long as cartridges continue to be provided. Tests will be prioritized for critical situations, where urgent results are imperative, according to the release.
Councilmember says Fresno should shelter-in-place through May
Taking an opinion contrary to fellow Fresno city councilmembers, Nelson Esparza said Wednesday the city should uphold its shelter-in-place order through at least May 31. The comments come in a week that saw both council members Mike Karbassi and Garry Bredefeld call for business to resume with certain safety measures.
Esparza said the science says sheltering-in for residents and the shuttering of nonessential businesses remains necessary.
“If you follow the number of confirmed cases in Fresno County and the San Joaquin Valley at large, it’s very clear that we’re at a point where we can’t even confirm that we have hit the peak number of infections or casualties yet,” he said. “It’s a very dangerous proposition to be discussing a reopening in May when we don’t even know if we’re on the other side of this thing yet.”
Kings County lifts shelter-in-place order; defers to state mandate
Meanwhile, in neighboring Kings County, which has seen a total of 71 positive cases since the outbreak begin, supervisors lifted the county’s shelter-in-place order.
In a Facebook video posted Tuesday, Supervisor Richard Valle said there was confusion among residents over who was responsible for the shelter-in-place order from March 31. Removing the order was a way to clarify that the county will align with Gov. Gavin Newsom’s statewide order.
“The intent is to get that out of the way so we can focus on the governor’s shelter-in-place directive,” Valle said.
“We have a long way to go. We need to remain vigilant and work together,” he said. “My colleagues and I today see a way out.”
Coffee chain opens new space, donates profits through Thursday
Dutch Bros Coffee opened its latest Fresno location this week – drive-thru only, of course.
The popular coffee shop is in a newly constructed shopping center at Brawley and Herndon avenues in northwest Fresno.
Dutch Bros – they say “bros,” not “brothers” – typically donates its profits to a charity when it opens a new store.
The new location is doing that, along with all its locations during the month of April. Now through Thursday, profits will be donated to First Responders First, which provides supplies like gloves, masks and gowns to front-line health care workers.
For now, the new Brawley location is open from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.
President orders meat processing plants stay open
President Donald Trump said he would sign an executive order Tuesday requiring meat processing plants to stay open. Trump confirmed he’ll use the Defense Production Act to order companies, including Tyson Foods and Smithfield Foods, to keep large meat production plants operating as critical infrastructure.
At least two area processing plants have had employees test positive for the coronavrius.
United Food and Commercial Workers, the union that represents many workers in the meat processing industry, said 20 workers in the industry have died from the virus and at least 6,500 employees in meat packing and processing have either tested positive, had to self-quarantine or had symptoms of the virus nationally.
Bitwise expands resource websites across the county
Eight more states and the District of Columbia have signed on to adopt their own versions of OnwardCA.org, a one-stop website to provide information on emergency resources and job prospects to workers who have been displaced by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The platform was developed by Fresno-based technology firm Bitwise Industries and first adopted in California. New York, New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland, Illinois, Washington, Oregon, Connecticut and the nation’s capital launched their state-specific Onward websites on Tuesday. Colorad rolled out its OnwardCO.org online site last week.
Fresno restaurant taking reservations for May
Popular Fresno restaurant Pismo’s Coastal Grill continues to pushing ahead with plans to open May 7, the day after Fresno’s shelter-in-place order is set to expire.
Owner Dave Fansler released a Facebook over the weekend detailing what dining will look like when the restaurant opens. It won’t be seating walk-ins, instead allowing reservations for five of its 20 table for every 15-minute arrival window. There will be 10 minutes between seatings so tables and chairs can be disinfected.
An employee will be dedicated to cleaning each shift, including pens, guest check holders, and heavily touched areas like door handles and servers will wear clear plastic face shields – not masks – though cooks will wear fabric masks. Menus and condiments will be thrown away after each seating.
Rotary Club of Fresno donates meal to meals to essential workers
The Rotary Club of Fresno has begun donating meals to Community Medical Centers, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office and St. Agnes Medical Center.
“These meals will go to essential workers who are selflessly working on the frontlines to keep our community safe during the COVID-19 crisis,” according to a release from the organization, which has partnered with Pardini’s Catering to make the meals.
The boxed lunches will be going out to hundreds of frontline employees over the coming weeks. The first lunched were delivered to St. Agnes Medical Center Tuesday.
“We are very grateful to the Fresno Rotary for allowing us the opportunity to feed first responders,” said Jim Pardini, owner of Pardini’s Catering. “Not only will this benefit them, but this will also benefit our employees who are unfortunately facing reduced schedules due to this pandemic.”
This story was originally published April 29, 2020 at 8:11 AM.