Send new stories and press releases to JP at news@wgrt.com.

Local News

Voters Can Request Absentee Ballot Online

While in-person voting is still available for all upcoming elections, more options are being rolled out for alternative ways to vote from home. Absentee ballot applications can be submitted through the website, Michigan.gov/Vote.

Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson explained the new option by saying, “This tool provides another digital option for voters to safely and conveniently apply to receive their absentee ballot, while also offering clerks an easy, cost efficient way of processing the application securely.”

Voters can currently scan and email their applications, but this new option requires voters to have a Michigan Driver’s License or State ID with no scanning necessary. Absentee voters sign using a tool that retrieves their signature used for their Driver’s License or ID. The request goes to their local Clerk to process just like a paper absentee ballot request.

This is not online voting. Actual ballots are still on paper and have to be mailed or hand-delivered to a clerk’s office. Signatures will still be verified in order for the votes to be counted.

Reporting for WGRT –  Jennie McClelland

Lake Huron Medical Center Achieves Patient Safety Award

Port Huron, MI – Lake Huron Medical Center announced today that it is a recipient of the Healthgrades 2020 Patient Safety Excellence AwardTM. This distinction places Lake Huron Medical Center among the top 5% of all short-term acute care hospitals reporting patient safety data as evaluated by Healthgrades, the leading resource that connects consumers, physicians and health systems. 

Lake Huron Medical Center is a member of Prime Healthcare, which operates 45 hospitals in 14 states. Prime Healthcare has more Patient Safety Excellence Award recipients for five consecutive years (2016-2020) than any other health system in the country, according to Healthgrades.

“Consumers might not know that information around patient safety is readily available and should be considered when researching healthcare options,” said Brad Bowman, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Healthgrades. “We commend the recipients of the 2020 Patient Safety Excellence Award for their dedication to providing excellent care for their patients.” 

“Lake Huron Medical Center has been at the heart of our community for more than 65 years, working to build trust and improve the health of our community,” commented Jose Kottor, Chief Executive Officer, Lake Huron Medical Center. “Providing high-quality, compassionate, comprehensive and cost-effective health care to the mind, body, and spirit of all those who walk through our doors is not just something we say; it’s what we do.” 

In addition to earning this recognition from Healthgrades in 2020, Lake Huron Medical Center has also been recognized as a five-star facility by The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and has received straight A’s from Leapfrog since 20118.

“Lake Huron Medical Center credits these achievements to a commitment to clinical excellence by our staff and physicians,” added Sridhar Reddy, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Lake Huron Medical Center. “It’s their commitment, each and every day, to our patients that makes all the difference.”

For more information about Lake Huron Medical Center, visit www.mylakehuron.com.  

Blue Water Area COVID-19 Update for June 19, 2020

St. Clair County, MI — Lambton County, Ontario

Cumulative confirmed COVID-19 cases as of June 19, 2020 at  9:00 AM are as follows:

  • State of Michigan: 60,618 confirmed cases; 5,818 deaths
  • St. Clair County: 463 confirmed cases; 47 deaths
  • Ontario: 32,917  confirmed cases;  2,553 deaths
  • Sarnia-Lambton: 281 confirmed cases; 25 deaths

The State of Michigan is reporting that between January 1st and June 17th,  151 of the COVID-19 cases in St. Clair County are attributed to long-term care facilities, with 122 residents and 29 staff testing positive. 28 of those cases were fatal.

There have been 7,111 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in residents of long-term care facilities in Michigan and 1976 deaths.

Lambton Health is reporting two current active outbreaks of COVID-19. One at Afton Park Place long-term care home, where one staff member is ill, and one at Bluewater Health, where three staff members tested positive.  Seven other outbreaks at facilities have been declared over, with 16 deaths resulting.

Sarnia enters Stage 2 of the Framework for Reopening our Province today, which indicates positive trends in public health, lower transmission of COVID-19, sufficient hospital capacity, and an increase in testing and tracking capabilities.

*** It is important to note that WGRT is continuing to report confirmed cases from each area, not total cases which are a combination of confirmed and probable cases. We have chosen to approach the data this way to simplify our reports and to create uniformity in the numbers we are reporting for each region, St.Clair County, Lambton County, Michigan, and Ontario.

Please continue to rely on reputable sources for information on COVID-19:

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand

Health Department Resumes Water Monitoring at Beaches

St. Clair County,  MI — Maintaining safe beaches in the Blue Water Area is a high priority. The St. Clair County Health Department does its part by testing water samples at eight local beaches to monitor for E. coli bacteria.

Last year, the Health Department recorded one of the healthiest beach seasons on record, and they only had to close two area beaches for three days of the season. According to the Health Department, the improvement of water quality is due to sewer separation projects, elimination of illicit discharge, and installation of green infrastructure along the 58-mile county shoreline.

The Health Department will collect water samples daily until Labor Day to monitor for safe levels of E.coli bacteria. Any advisories about public beaches will be shared on their 24-hour Water Quality Hotline at 877-504-SWIM, on the St. Clair County Beaches Facebook page, the “MyBeachCast” app for smartphones, and the Michigan BeachGuard website at  www.egle.state.mi.us/beach/.

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand

The Runaway Bride 5K Set for August 1

In-person 5Ks are getting back on the calendar after a long season of cancellations and virtual races. The Runaway Bride 2nd Annual 5k FUNdraiser is scheduled for Saturday, August 1. That gives runners about six weeks to get in shape after a “Safer at Home” experience that may have included a lot of baked goods and Netflix marathons.

The Runaway Bride 5K raises funds for A Beautiful Me, a local charity that empowers girls through workshops, programs, and events in their schools and community. Over 9,000 girls have benefited from their programs since the founding in 2008.

The race will take place along the St. Clair River in Port Huron, starting at 8:00 a.m. Runners and walkers are encouraged to go along with the wedding theme and get their old bridesmaid dresses or tuxedos out of the closet for the race.

Participants get a free t-shirt if they sign up by July 10. More information can be found at RunSignUp.com/TheRunawayBride2020. The cost is $30 for those who preregister and $40 on the day of the event.

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland

Juneteenth Celebration Day

June 19 has been designated as an official Juneteenth Celebration Day in the State of Michigan. While there is growing momentum toward making Juneteenth a national holiday, Governor Gretchen Whitmer made the declaration early this week to commemorate the 1865 abolition of slavery in the United States.

Juneteenth is a colloquial reference to June 19, 1865, the date in which enslaved people in Texas were finally made aware of the Emancipation Proclamation, signed by Abraham Lincoln two years earlier. In the age of instant communication, a two-year delay in relaying a life-changing message seems unfathomable, but just 155 years ago, it was reality.

In referencing the Juneteenth proclamation, Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilchrist II said “We have seen Michiganders across the state continue to fight for their freedom and the freedom of others. This day, which marks when the final group of Black Americans understood that they were free, is an important reminder of the work that must continue to be done to deliver equity and opportunity to every community.”

Reporting for WGRT – Jennie McClelland