Month: December 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic has prevented many organizations from carrying on their activities as normal. However, one winter activity will still go on once there’s snow on the ground. Crookston’s Driftbusters Snowmobile Club is getting ready to hit the trails as soon as there’s enough snow on the ground. Mike Boucher, the treasurer for the Driftbusters Snowmobile Club, said the annual membership supper was canceled this year, but they’re hoping to draw more members with reduced fees.

“We normally have our membership supper in the first week of December,” Boucher said. “But with the regulations, we unfortunately had to cancel it this year. It’s normally our big fundraiser to kick the year off. However, we decided to reduce our membership fees for this season. We normally charge $60 for a family and $40 for an individual. This year, we dropped it down to $50 for a family and $35 for an individual.”

Boucher said even though the Club saved money by not putting on the annual supper, the membership fees are still vital. “We still need the membership money, because we’re still carrying on all of the normal activities of the club. We still have monthly meetings. We still have to pay for trail insurance and maintain the trails. Of the membership money, $20 of that goes to MnUSA, which is the Minnesota United Snowmobilers Association. By becoming a member of our club, you’re automatically enrolled into the state’s association of clubs.”

Boucher said the club’s safety training field day for students is still set to go in early January. “The field day is for students ages 12-16. We have that scheduled for January 2. Tentatively, it’s still a go. This year, we decided to add a second class. It’s going to be the same day. We’re going to have a morning and afternoon session. At eight students per class, that only allows us 16 students. I know things are going to fill up pretty quick, and unfortunately, we’re going to have to turn some people away.”

Boucher said that any family or individual who is interested in joining Driftbusters this winter can talk to a club member, or go online for more information. “We have a Facebook page. It’s just Crookston Driftbusters on Facebook. We also have a website, which is DriftbustersCrookston.org, so we have our links to membership information on that page as well.”

Boucher said even with all of the difficulties and restrictions that the pandemic has brought on, snowmobiling is one activity that should be able to carry on mostly normally this winter. “We say it’s the ultimate social distancing activity for the winter,” Boucher said. “You’re riding at least six feet apart. You’re wearing a mask and a helmet. Even with all of the restrictions going on, snowmobiling is still one activity we should be able to take part in this winter.”

The Crookston Charter Commission met Monday evening in the Council Chambers at City Hall.  The committee reviewed the 2019 meeting with new City Administrator Amy Finch to begin to move on items that have come into question in the charter over the past 15 months.

Blake Carlson asked whether the issue of a special election had yet to be resolved. The City has two conflicting legal opinions, one from former City Attorney Chuck Fitzgerald stating that the city can’t hold a special election, and one from current City Attorney Corky Reynolds that they can. Finch said that city staff would to clarify that and have a proposal for the commission at the next meeting. “There was discussion this evening that the special election section may contradict the vacancy section for appointments that says – fill a vacancy for the remainder of an unexpired term,” said Finch. “The special election section says that the council may call by resolution a special election. We’re going to sort that out and work with the attorney and possibly the League of (Minnesota) Cities.”

The other issue in the charter that was discussed was the number of votes required. Chris Fee said that the concern during the vacancies was that if someone missed a council meeting, you possibly wouldn’t have enough votes to approve bills or other city business. The charter currently requires five affirmative votes to appoint someone to a vacancy or pass any resolution, ordinance, or motion regardless of the number of Council Members present. Five Council Members plus the Mayor or Assistant Mayor are required to have a quorum.  

Betty Arvidson said the committee had previously discussed whether the majority of Council Members could pass a vote versus having a specific number. Finch said she’d read some other local charters that aren’t as specific as Crookston’s, and she thought the wording could be changed to represent a majority vote. “We’re also going address the number of votes, also in the vacancy section,” said Finch. “Our charter is very specific on the number of votes needed for an appointment where there was a situation with two vacancies where you could run into an issue where you don’t have enough votes to make that appointment. We’re going to look into that and come back to schedule a follow-up meeting in late April/early May to come back with some proposals for the committee, so we can have something ready for them to recommend to Council by the end of the year. There are ways to word that, so it’s a majority of your filled Council seats. So, we’re going to look at some options and bring that back for the committee to discuss and decide on to give staff direction for the later meeting (in December).”

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) issued updated COVID-19 quarantine guidance that integrates new recommendations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), including options for shorter quarantines under certain conditions on Monday.

Quarantine is one of several public health tools commonly used to reduce the risk of a person spreading an infectious disease to others. A person goes into quarantine after they have had a high-risk contact with someone who was infectious with that disease, but before they are sick or test positive for a disease. Quarantining is an important public health measure because diseases like COVID-19 can spread person-to-person before people know they are infected.

For months, CDC had recommended a quarantine period of 14 days for those exposed to someone with COVID-19. This guidance was based on evidence showing that a person can develop a COVID-19 infection as many as 14 days after being exposed. While a 14-day quarantine remains the recommendation for greatest protection, last week CDC announced an update to that long-standing guidance that includes options for 10-day or seven-day quarantines under certain conditions: Options to Reduce Quarantine for Contacts of Persons with SARS-CoV-2 Infection Using Symptom Monitoring and Diagnostic Testing.

“Evidence indicates the risk of a person becoming infected and passing along that infection is highest in the early days of the quarantine, and much lower in the last few days of the 14-day period,” said Minnesota Commissioner of Health Jan Malcolm. “CDC determined there is a public health benefit to offering shorter quarantine options that boost compliance and do not significantly increase risk. After reviewing the available information, we agreed with that conclusion and adopted their new guidance.”

Malcolm emphasized that while the risk goes down as one gets into the final days of the 14-day period after exposure, there is still a small risk. If a person leaves quarantine and then develops any symptoms of COVID-19 up through day 14, they still need to stay away from others and get tested as soon as possible.

“Monitoring for symptoms for all 14 days after an exposure is a really important part of this process,” Commissioner Malcolm said. “Even minor symptoms associated with COVID-19, like a headache, should not be ignored. If you are just getting out of a shortened quarantine and you develop even minor symptoms, you need to isolate and get tested.”

The new CDC guidance adopted by Minnesota includes several specific conditions. For example, shortening your quarantine period to 10 days after your most recent exposure to someone with COVID-19 may be considered if:

• You have not tested positive for COVID-19, you don’t have symptoms, and you will continue to watch out for possible symptoms through day 14.
• You will continue to mask, maintain at least 6 feet of distance from others, and follow other prevention guidance.
• You will isolate and get tested as soon as possible if you develop any symptoms of COVID-19.

The updated guidance allows for the quarantine period to be shortened to seven days if the person meets all the above conditions and has a negative COVID-19 test result – so long as that test was a PCR test (from saliva, or nose or throat) and was conducted at least five full days after the start of the quarantine period. In this scenario the person may return to regular activities if they do not have symptoms and continues to self-monitor for symptoms through day 14, continues to mask, maintains at least 6 feet of distance from others, and follows other prevention guidance.

Shortening quarantine from 14 days is not recommended in the following scenarios:

• You have a household exposure. This is because it is difficult for household members to quarantine separately and household exposures have a particularly high risk of transmission.
• You are in a congregate living situation, including a long-term care facility, correctional facility, homeless shelter or other setting. In these settings, it can be very difficult for people to quarantine individually and there is higher risk of exposing multiple people, including those at high-risk of severe disease.
• You work in health care settings, correctional facilities or shelters. The updated state guidance has specific language for health care workers. Because health care workers provide care for the most vulnerable and those most at risk for severe complications from COVID-19, they should be excluded for 14 days from working in health care setting. If a facility is experiencing a staffing shortage, the facility may ask the health care worker to return prior to the end of their 14-day quarantine. In such a situation, health care workers returning to work should be proactively tested and monitored as outlined in the MDH COVID-19 Recommendations for Health Care Workers (PDF).

For more information, visit Close Contacts and Tracing: COVID-19.

It’s not too late to get your flu shot at RiverView Health! Being immunized against influenza is more important than ever this year to keep people healthy and not overwhelm our health care system during the COVID-19 pandemic.

December 6-12 is National Influenza Vaccination Week. Anyone six months and older should have a flu vaccine. Vaccination is crucial for protecting people at high risk of serious flu complications, including:

• young children
• pregnant women
• adults 65 years and older
• anyone with chronic health conditions like asthma, diabetes, or heart disease.

Currently, the most common strain of influenza in Minnesota is Influenza B, according to the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH). While the latest weekly report indicates there have only been 12 reported cases of hospitalization in the state, flu activity is expected to increase in the coming months.

Over 4,000 people were hospitalized with confirmed influenza in 2019, according to MDH. Influenza-associated deaths accounted for the loss of 200 Minnesotans in 2019, including three pediatric patients.

While the flu shot will not prevent you from getting COVID-19, it may prevent you from being hit by both illnesses at once. According to the Centers for Disease Control, it is possible to get influenza and COVID-19 at the same time.

“Both influenza and COVID-19 are respiratory illnesses that can make people very sick,” shared Angie Salentiny, River­View Infection Prevention/Employee Health Coordinator. “That’s why it’s important to take steps to prevent both dis­eases. The flu vaccine can help protect you from getting the flu and prevent you from passing it to people who could get very sick from flu, such as older family and friends or people with underlying medical conditions.

“Get vaccinated to protect yourself from the flu. Cover your cough, wash your hands, stay home when you are sick, clean frequently touched surfaces, wear a mask, and stay 6 feet from others to prevent the spread of flu and COVID-19.”

To schedule your flu shot, call 281.9595.

UPDATE: 12/7/20 12:53 p.m. 

The victim in this case has been identified as Jeffrey Allen Shulzitski, 55 y/o, of Grand Forks.  Shultzitski suffered injuries that led investigators to believe that homicidal violence was involved.  The investigation is still in the early stages and information is being actively followed up on. At this time, the incident does not appear to be a random act and we don’t believe there is any danger to the general public.

ORIGINAL RELEASE

On Saturday, December 5, at 2:22 p.m., officers from the Grand Forks Police Department were dispatched to the Budget Inn Express at 3400 Gateway Dr. for a welfare check on a male subject in a motel room. Officers made entry into the motel room and found a male subject deceased. There is no more information that is going to be released at this time as this is an ongoing unattended death investigation. The identity of the deceased is being withheld pending next of kin notifications.

Anyone with information on this, or any related, incident, is encouraged to contact the Grand Forks Police Department by one of the following methods:

Call:                       701-787-8000
Online:                 Submit a tip via the GFPD’s Facebook or website
App:                     Submit a tip via the Tip411 app

The Minnesota Department of Health is reporting 5,135 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, 161 probable cases from antigen testing, and 21 deaths. The confirmed positive cases were the result of 62,724 completed tests for a positive rate of 8.2 percent.

Roseau County had 22 confirmed cases, Polk County-19, Pennington County-11 cases, Marshall County-8 cases and 1 death (55-59 years), Kittson County-4 cases, Red Lake County-3 cases, Mahnomen County-3 cases, Lake of the Woods-2 cases, and Norman County-1 case.

Updated December 7, 2020
Updated daily at 11 a.m., with data current as of 4 p.m. the previous day.

Data is for cases that were tested and returned positive. All data is preliminary and may change as cases are investigated. Many data points are collected during case interviews. Data presented below is for all cases, regardless of interview status. Data for cases pending interview may be listed as “unknown/missing.”

Positive PCR test results are considered confirmed cases. Positive antigen test results are considered probable cases.

All probable cases get the same public health follow up and recommendations as cases confirmed by PCR tests.

Other Statistics

• Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome In Children (MIS-C) Statistics
• Minnesota COVID-19 Public Dashboard
• Minnesota’s COVID-19 Response and Preparation Capacity
• Dial Back Dashboard
• CDC: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Cases in the U.S.
• Minnesota COVID-19 Modeling

Data in the data tables is correct as of 11 a.m. daily. Dynamic images and maps will update shortly after 11 a.m. daily and will not work if your browser is in compatibility mode.