St. Clair County

Port Huron City Council Will Decide Who Takes 4th Seat

At a Port Huron City Council meeting Monday night, the council swore in its new and returning members. Three council seats were filled by Council Members Sherry Archibald, Teri Lamb, and Robert Mozurak with Archibald named Mayor Pro-Tem. Pauline Repp was sworn in as well to continue serving as the City of Port Huron’s mayor for another two years.

Since Lisa Beedon won a seat on the St. Clair County Board of Commissioners and will take that position in January, she will vacate her seat on the Council.  None of the other candidates running for Port Huron City Council received 25% of the vote; therefore, the City Council will be accepting Letters of Interest from the community when Beedon resigns.

According to its Charter, the Port Huron City Council must consist of the mayor and six Council Members. If a vacancy occurs, and no candidate from the preceding election received at least 25% of the total ballots cast in that election, the City Council “shall solicit and consider letters of interest from qualified and registered City electors who are qualified to fill the vacancy.”

After the letters have been received, the Council has 45 days to vote on a new member, and the candidate must receive at least 4 votes to win the seat.

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand

Two Killed in Separate Crashes

Kimball Twp., MI – Two people were killed in separate crashes last night and this morning.

At about 10:30 Monday night, deputies were dispatched to the area of Dunlap Road and Flinchbaugh Road in Kimball Township for a crash.  When they arrived, they found a wrecked Harley Davidson motorcycle and the driver of the motorcycle.  Further investigation led to finding a 2005 GMC Envoy that had gone off the road into a wooded area.

Preliminary investigation into the crash found that the Envoy, driven by a 31 year old Port Huron woman was heading southbound on Dunlap, crossed the centerline and struck the motorcycle, driven by a 55 year old man from Greenwood Township.  The man was pronounced dead at the scene.  The woman was arrested for suspicion of operating while intoxicated causing death.

The crash remains under investigation.  Kimball Township Fire and Rescue and Tri-Hospital EMS assisted at the scene.

Shortly before 5:30 this morning, deputies were called to Lapeer Road and Wales Center Road in Wales Township for a one vehicle crash.  When they got to the scene, they discovered a 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche had been traveling eastbound on Lapeer, went off the road into the ditch and rolled several times, ending up on its wheels.  The driver and sole occupant of the vehicle, a 26 year old man from Melvin, Michigan had been ejected from the truck.  He was transported by Tri-Hospital EMS to McLaren Port Huron Hospital, where he was pronounced dead from his injuries.

Emmett Fire and Rescue assisted at the scene of the crash, which remains under investigation.

Submitted by the St. Clair County Sheriff’s Office

Blue Water Area COVID-19 Update Wednesday, November 10

St. Clair County, MI — Lambton County, Ontario

Cumulative confirmed COVID-19 cases as of November 10, 2020 at  9:00 AM are as follows:

  • State of Michigan: 216, 804 confirmed cases; 7,640 deaths
  • St. Clair County: 1,664 confirmed cases; 66 deaths
  • Ontario: 85,395 confirmed cases;  3,245 deaths
  • Sarnia-Lambton: 380 confirmed cases; 25 deaths

St. Clair County has 1,125 active cases of the virus, an increase of over 300 cases since last week, and 9% of hospital beds in the county are being used for COVID-19 patients.

According to a press release from the St. Clair County Health Department, they are limited in their ability to investigate cases at this time, and there is a growing number of workplace and school related cases.

Dr. Annette Mercatante, Medical Health Officer explained, “In these weeks or months between high transmission rates and the release of a vaccine, we simply have to deal with this reality.  Remember what is making you mildly ill can be life threatening to someone else. These difficult times will get better, but we have to work together to minimize the impact of this on our community and economy. And we have to act now.”

Lambton County currently has 9 active cases. Health officials recommend good hygiene, sanitization of frequently touched surfaces, and mask wearing for individuals who are caring for a COVID-19 infected person in their household.

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

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand

Op Ed – COVID-19 Cases Increasing but Schools Remain Open

There is no question that the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 is increasing. The more people who get infected the greater the risk is for personal, societal, and economic impacts. This is not the time to debate the reality of the data, nor the profound impact it could have on our community. What is open to debate is how we should respond. One of the most common questions we hear is “why are the schools still open when our case rates are so high?”

First, nationwide and even international studies strongly suggest that school transmission can be kept at a minimum with proper mitigation strategies like screening, physical distancing and masking.  Despite most schools returning to in-person learning in September there was no immediate surge in cases as a result. Although we expect cases to show up in a school, widespread transmission within a school is not a given. In fact this is exactly what we are seeing throughout Michigan. Despite widespread community spread, our students are not “super spreaders” while in school.  This is because while in school physical distancing and masking is enforced and controlled, which is not always the case once they go home. In fact, school could very likely be the safest place some kids go during the course of a day.

Second, the overall benefit of in-person learning greatly outweighs the risk of them going to school (see above). Not just academic learning, but emotional and social development are essential to our health, especially when you comprehend that COVID-19 is not going away any time soon. In the meantime, our kids have to grow and flourish or we will have hell to pay when this pandemic is over.  It is incumbent on us to weigh risk vs benefit for keeping our kids in school.  As long as the risk of transmitting the virus is lower in schools than it is in the general community, the effort should be to maintain in-person learning.

Finally, NOTHING about this pandemic is static.  As we continue to collect data, communicate with the schools and the public, and evaluate the circumstances in each school, we will constantly be re-evaluating how to proceed.  It is possible, and even likely that “pauses” will occur with in-person learning. It is possible that school districts will alter their policies for both virtual and in-person learning.  It is possible that staffing for schools will be a bigger issue than the risk to students.  Return to Learn legislation passed in August provides schools with the flexibility they need to shift how they do things.  It also requires them to consult with their local health department “to develop guidelines on appropriate methods for delivering pupil instruction for the 2020-2021 school year that are based on local data however, a determination concerning the method for delivering pupil instruction remains with the district.”  St. Clair County schools have been working hard to find the balance between harm reduction and schooling with the student’s best interest at heart.  We are confident that moving through this next challenge of high COVID-19 transmission, decisions will be made based on the strongest data available, integrity and the desire to provide our children the best education possible.

 

Yours in Health,

Annette Mercatante, MD, MPH

Medical Health Officer

St. Clair County Health Department

 

Submitted by the St. Clair County Health Department

Andrew Beeler Selected for Majority Deputy Caucus Chair

Andrew Beeler secured the seat for Michigan State Representative of the 83rd District in Tuesday’s election, and he has been selected by Republican legislators to serve as the House Republican caucus deputy chair for the 2021-22 legislative term.

The deputy caucus chair helps develop the majority caucus agenda, presides over meetings with the full Republican membership, and assists with developing policies.

“It’s an honor to not only step in and serve as your state representative, but also to be selected as the caucus deputy chair,” Beeler said. “I’m looking forward to working with the caucus to accomplish great things for our families throughout Michigan. While the Republican caucus has come a long way since the 2018-20 term, there’s always room for improvement, new ideas, and reforms. I’m very glad to be here and to know I get to be part of this process.”

Beeler will take office in January, taking over for the current State Representative, Shane Hernandez, who has served the 83rd District for the past 4 years.

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand

 

 

Outbreaks in Office Settings Spur MIOSHA Program

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services is reporting 28 documented COVID-19 outbreaks in office-setting workplaces around the state. Office settings make up 5% of all documented outbreaks, and 7% of new outbreaks identified in the last week.

In a press conference last week, Governor Whitmer said that MIOSHA would be, “increasing its scrutiny on the remote work policies established by the Michigan business community and, primarily, those policies that revolve around offices.”

This week MIOSHA is expected to announce a new state emphasis program for office work which will reinforce rules enacted by the Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity on October 14th.

Whitmer said, “Under statutes, MIOSHA can cite employers, require abatement, and fine them up to $7,000 for failing to produce a remote work policy or if the employer’s preparedness and response plan is noncompliant.”

Employers must create a policy prohibiting in-person work for employees to the extent that their work activities can feasibly be completed remotely.

MDHHS is also reporting 8.3% of current outbreaks are in manufacturing and construction workplaces.

Reporting for WGRT – Jessie Wiegand