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PAGE 10A PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS THURSDAY. NOVEMBER 12. 2020
Upcoming winter sparks
of new COVID-19 wave
By Beau Evans
Staff Writer
Capitol Beat News Service
Nearly eight months into
the COVID-19 pandemic,
Georgia officials and public-
health experts are eying the
upcoming winter season with
caution amid a recent uptick
in positive coronavirus cases
and the dual impacts of the
flu.
Cases of COVID-19,
which had killed 8,156 peo
ple by Friday and sickened
hundreds of thousands more
in Georgia, have declined
sharply since a peak in late
July when the state averaged
more than 3,500 cases per
day, according to state De
partment of Public Health
(DPH) data.
But cases have crept back
up in recent weeks from a
daily average of just under
1,200 cases on Oct. 1 to more
than 1,700 cases as of Thurs
day. The DPH data also
shows the state’s case posi
tivity rates and hospitaliza
tion counts have ticked up
over the past few weeks.
Georgia’s recent increases
mirror a spiking trend of new
COVID-19 cases across the
U.S. that soared to more than
113,000 nationwide on
Thursday - though Georgia’s
case rates have not risen so
steeply as in many other
states, said Jose Cordero, an
epidemiology professor at
the University of Georgia
(UGA).
“Right now, we are in an
upward trend,” Cordero said.
“When you have a virus like
[COVID-19], you have it not
in a single wave but in multi
ple waves. And that’s exactly
what we’re seeing.”
Georgia might even expe
rience back-to-back waves of
increasing COVID-19 infec
tions if people abandon
masks, social distancing and
other safety precautions dur
ing the holiday season, said
Isaac Fung, an associate pro
fessor of epidemiology at
Georgia Southern Univer
sity’s Jiann-Ping Hsu College
of Public Health.
With cold temperatures
not yet present in Georgia,
Fung traced the current creep
in positive cases largely to
people who have disregarded
safety measures as the pan
demic rolls on without a vac
cine likely available until
next year.
“If people continue to be
relaxed about wearing face
masks, we could potentially
see a major increase after
Thanksgiving and another
wave after Christmas,” Fung
said. “It is certainly a very
challenging circumstance for
many individuals, especially
older age groups.”
At the same time, the rate
of COVID-19 tests aimed at
helping pinpoint where out
breaks occur has declined in
Georgia recently, as noted in
a White House task force re
port issued Nov. 1. Fewer
tests make it tougher to gauge
the true extent of the virus’
reach in local communities,
the report says.
That knowledge gap could
heighten the risk of spreading
coronavirus in gathering
places like bars or indoor par
ties, particularly if family and
friends sick of being socially
separated throw caution to
the wind for the Thanksgiv
ing and Christmas holidays,
said UGA’s Cordero.
“If you have people that
you don’t know whether
they’re positive or not,
you’re going to have more
[cases], especially with the
asymptomatic spreaders,”
Cordero said.
State public-health offi
cials and Gov. Brian Kemp
have touted boosts in testing
availability and turnaround
times for several months,
after tests were limited and
sluggish during the pan
demic’s early days. Private
labs and companies like CVS
and Walmart joined the state
to start offering tests in May.
But more recently, Geor
gians preoccupied with re
building their businesses,
keeping their online-learning
kids focused at home and just
generally feeling fatigued by
the stress and isolation of the
pandemic have gone to get
tested less often, said Nancy
Nydam, a DPH spokes
woman.
“Testing for COVID-19 in
Georgia has declined as it has
nationally,” Nydam said.
“There is not one definitive
reason for the decline. ...
[But] it is possible that as we
get closer to Thanksgiving
and the holidays, we again
will see an uptick in demand
for testing.”
Alongside official testing,
UGA Professor Erin Lipp
and a student group have
been analyzing COVID-19
levels at three Athens waste-
water treatment plants since
late May to gain a broader
picture of the virus’ presence
in Athens-Clarke County, in
cluding among infected peo
ple who do not show
symptoms.
A dashboard, which de
picts the weekly amount of
COVID-19 viruses that de
tach from feces in the
county’s sewerage system,
has shown fluctuating levels
of coronavirus in Athens
since October, complicating
the guesswork for how trans
missions might trend in the
coming winter months, Lipp
said.
“We haven’t seen a con
sistent trend in recent weeks
pointing in one direction or
another,” Lipp said. “But we
really need to be aware of the
increased possibility of trans
mission in Athens, even if it’s
not happening right now.”
With such uncertainty,
Georgia officials and health
experts are pushing to avoid
simultaneous outbreaks of
COVID-19 and influenza,
which combined could ham
mer local hospitals where
doctors and nurses have
spent months treating coron
avirus patients.
Already, Albany’s hard-hit
Phoebe Putney Memorial
Hospital in South Georgia is
bracing for “another signifi
cant and potentially danger
ous stage” in the fight against
COVID-19, although posi
tive cases and hospitaliza
tions of late have stayed
steadily low, said hospital
President and CEO Scott
Steiner.
The Pickens Report
Submitted by Pickens County Government
October 2020
Submitted by
Tucker Green
The end of October saw
storms that caused wide
spread power outages and
some property damage.
Thousands of residents were
affected and hundreds of
crews from the local govern
ment agencies and utility
companies worked for days
around the clock as part of
the restoration efforts. Pick
ens County government
crews cleared roughly 110
trees downed by the storms.
The debris affected 70 roads
across the county. The crews
will continue to chip trees on
the right of way, but all roads
are clear. Public works will
also replace a pipe that was
damaged in the storm. Pick
ens County appreciates the
dedicated workers who spent
many hours away from their
families to support our com
munity.
During the month of Oc
tober, planning and develop
ment issued 56 new building
permits. The water depart
ment installed 12 new me
ters. The Pickens Animal
Shelter brought in 61 new an
imals, and 57 went out
through various forms of
adoption. Animal control re
sponded to 12 cases. The 911
Operations Center received
2,344 total calls, 751 were
medical responses or fire re
lated.
PCRD completed a suc
cessful basketball registra
tion, 360 kids will be spread
across 37 teams this season.
Games are tentatively sched
uled to begin on November
30th. The Pickens County
government departments
continue to stay busy work
ing for the citizens of Pickens
County. The Pickens County
Board of Commissioners
continue to do a great job of
leading these efforts. As
work progresses, and projects
continue, I will do my best to
keep you informed of these
developments.
Until the next time, stay
safe, and shop local.
GRISHAM&POOLE.PC
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but you can start where you are and change
the ending.’’ ~ c.s. Lewis
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JASPER, GEORGIA
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Experienced. Established. Effective.
The Sheriff’s
Beat
From the Pickens
Sheriff’s Office
During this past week, the Pickens Sheriff’s Office responded
to or initiated 2,365 calls for service. These numbers are
taken from the report provided directly from the 911 Center
where all calls are logged as they are performed. Below is a
breakdown of all dispatched calls by the call type for each in-
cident.
Accidents
38
Suicide Threats / Attempts
2
Domestics
31
Theft / Burglary Related
27
Forgery / Fraud
7
Traffic Stops
123
Citations Issued
0
Animal Investigations
25
Suspicious Persons/Activity
38
Alarm Calls
29
Stranded Motorists
15
Street Hazards
83
Vandalism
15
Abandoned Vehicles
6
Extra Patrol - neighborhoods,
businesses, residences
1,412. In addition to these, other calls include search warrants,
civil service, 911 hang-up calls, assaults, disorderly persons,
missing persons, assistance with medical calls, natural death
investigations, demented persons, funeral escorts, harassment,
trespassing, and many more.
Breakdown of Charges for those Arrested:
17 individuals were booked into the Adult Detention Center
on charges from the Pickens Sheriff’s Office. Out of these,
the following charges were taken by PSO deputies (note:
some individuals have multiple charges):
Outstanding Warrant 3
Violation of Georgia Controlled Substance Act 9
Obstruction of Law Enforcement Officer 5
Probation Violation 3
Accountability Court Violation 1
Interference with Custody 1
Aggravated Assault 1
Battery 1
Cruelty to Children 1
Criminal Trespass 1
Failure to Register as Sex Offender 1
worries
in Ga.
“This has been a record
setting week for new
COVID-19 cases nationwide
as the vims spreads rapidly in
many areas where cold
weather has arrived,” Steiner
said Friday. “Once cooler
weather comes to Southwest
Georgia, and we begin to
spend more time indoors, the
risk for vims transmission
will rise.”
Kemp’s office said the
governor and the state’s pub
lic-health chief, Dr. Kathleen
Toomey, have been checking
in regularly with hospitals
ahead of the winter season to
prepare for any capacity is
sues resulting from a poten
tial influx of COVID-19 and
flu patients.
State emergency-manage
ment officials also have “an
on-hand supply” of masks,
hand sanitizer and other pro
tective gear that “can be de
ployed at a moment’s notice”
in the event of an outbreak,
said the governor’s press sec
retary, Cody Hall.
“We continue to urge all
Georgians to follow best
practices and get their flu
shot to prevent a ‘twindemic’
of COVID-19 and the flu,”
Hall said. “We’re also still
asking Georgians to do ‘Four
Things for Fall’ to mitigate
the spread of COVID-19:
Wear a mask, wash your
hands, watch your distance
and follow the guidance of
public-health officials.”
Fung, of Georgia South
ern, agrees those habits could
help stave off a winter
COVID-19 wave. He’s been
sheltering in his home since
March, when the vims first
fired across Georgia, and put
bluntly the possible conse
quences for people who ig
nore distancing and masking
practices this holiday season.
“They need to be aware
that they may potentially in
fect their grandparents,”
Fung said. “If I was in that
situation, I would feel very
bad.”
In addition to the above
activity from the Uniform
Patrol Division, Court
Service Deputies reported
the following statistics for
the past week:
Persons Scanned at
Front Door: 883
Weapons Found: 5
Courts Held: 8
Arrest Made in the
Courthouse: 1
Civil Papers Received : 36
Civil Papers Served: 45
In the Adult Detention
Center:
Total Jail population: 72
Total male inmates: 58
Total female inmates: 14
Sex Offenders:
There are currently 71 sex
offenders registered with
the Pickens Sheriff’s Office.
Attention Veterans!
We are your American Legion!
We are dedicated to:
❖ Veterans
• Emergency assistance for homeless Veterans.
• Coordinating with Home Depot for Veteran related projects.
• Benefits counseling so that Veterans get what they earned.
• Fellowship for Veterans-We have served our country so we understand
what you are feeling.
• Monthly meetings, weekly lunches, participation in community events
throughout the year.
❖ Community
• College scholarships for Pickens County Veterans.
• Scholarships for two high school students each year.
• Youth Sports Sponsorship for 5 teams and 50 baseball players.
• Sponsorship of Scouting at the Senior and Cub levels.
❖ Patriotism
• Dedicated to the preservation of our country, its symbols
and its values.
• Participation in community events and presentation of our flag.
• Instructing in flag etiquette and proper disposal of worn flags.
❖ Remembering the Cost of Freedom
• You know the cost because you helped to pay the bill.
• All gave some. Some gave all.
We know a thing or two, because we have seen a thing or two.
Contact your
American Legion Post:
American Legion Post 149
P.O. Box 477
Jasper, GA 30143
706-253-1715 alpost149@gmail.com
www.americanlegion149.com
Donations are tax deductible.