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2A ®Jje l)era(t) <©a?Ettf Tuesday, January 26,2021 Vaccine demand high; second doses prioritized COVID-19 CORONAVIRUS DISEASE Lamar nears 1100 cases Health Department personnel ad ministered 283 COVID-19 vac cinations Jan. 20 at its drive- thru operation at Southern Rivers Energy (SRE). Ap proximately 1200 doses of the vaccine have been administered here thus far. Vaccinations will continue this week at SRE from 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. Wednesday. District 4 Public Health is making appointments for second doses only at this time due to limited vaccine sup plies. You must make an ap pointment in advance to get vaccinated. Call 762-888- 8180 to schedule. This is the only appointment line and it stays very busy. Upson Regional Medical Center is also doing vaccinations at its Barnesville facility. Call 770.872.5015 for an appointment. This line also receives heavy call volume so keep trying. Lamar County had 1094 confirmed cases of COVID-19 as of the Jan. 24 update from DPH. That number is up from 1030 cases Jan. 17. Lamar has had 74 coronavirus related hospitalizations. The community also re corded its 31st COVID-19 fatality last week, that of a 67-year-old black male. As of Friday, sheriff Brad White was tracking 121 positive cases at 109 local residences. Local COV1D numbers and those from surround ing counties are updated daily at barnesville.com. Alleged killer Ray fighting extradition Jaylan Jashad Ray, the 22-year-old Albany man charged with killing an Ellenwood teenager and dumping her body here, is fighting extradition Our staff is"A"mazing! We're proud to announce we scored an A for our Leapfrog Safety Score. At Upson, our patients'safety is always a critical component in everything we do. This dedication to keeping our patients safe has just been recognized with a Leapfrog Score of"A"for safety. Patient safety and our resulting A Score means protecting our patients from errors, injuries, accidents, and infections. And to that end, two major accomplishments we've attained are: No Ventilator Associated Events or Hospital Acquired C. Diff cases. Receiving such a high score makes us proud. Keeping you safe also makes us very happy. NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED and remains in the Leon County jail in Tallahas see, Fla. Ray, 22, was in court last week in Tallahassee and did not waive an extradition hearing. “He did not cooper ate and we have turned the matter over to the district attorney’s office. They can get a gover nor’s warrant and get him back here but that takes about 30 days,” sheriff Brad White said Monday. Ray is charged with murder and aggravated assault in the shooting death of D’Shunti Kyanni Hunter, 17, whose body was found in Unionville Church Cemetery here Jan. 10. More charges are pending. New football coach to be named tonight The Lamar County Board of Education will hold a called meeting to night at 6 p.m. to name a new head football coach. Interviews were held all day Friday and the field narrowed down to two finalists, according to school superintendent Jute Wilson. The new coach will replace Jeff Sloan who stepped down in Decem ber. He remains at LCHS as assistant principal and athletic director. Barnesville council takes first step in approving new cell tower here WALTER GEIGER news@barnesville.com The Barnesville city council approved the first reading of an ordinance to allow a conditional use permit for a new Verizon cell tower just off Hwy. 341 on Yatesville Road. The tower will be located on .238 acres owned by Lindy Farmer. The tower was also ap proved by the planning commission. The land is currently zoned for multi-family residential but the tower parcel will be rezoned for industrial use. The council will give final approval at its next regular meeting on Feb. 1. A Verizon engineer at the meeting reported the 155-foot tower will great ly improve cell signals along Yatesville and Country Kitchen roads where cell signals are currently de graded - par ticularly when the caller is indoors. The new tower will also take some of the burden off an over loaded tower south of town on Hwy. 341 which should improve Verizon coverage in Redbone. The engineer could not give a time frame for completion of the tower pending further engineer ing work. LEAPFROG HOSPITAL SAFETY FALL 2020 GRADE I UPSON Regional Medical Center & The big-city hospital that's right in your backyard UPSON Regional Medical Center *Not an actual patient* Experience and Advanced Technology close to home. UPSON Regional Medical Center FREE COVID-19 Vaccine in Barnesville Upson Regional Medical Center Barnesville Medical Office Building (100 Hwy 18 W) Beginning January 21 The COVID-19 vaccine is now available for adults aged 65 and older, law enforcement officers, firefighters and first responders. People in the designated groups interested in getting the vaccine MUST have an appointment in order to receive admission. Please review the fact sheet on the vaccine and complete the consent form prior to appointment. These documents are available at urmc.org, onsite upon check in, and in the Upson Regional Medical Center Barnesville Medical Office Building lobby for you to pick up prior to your visit. To schedule your appointment beginning at 9:00 am January 18, call 770-872-5015.