WEDNESDAY UPDATES: Decision on Missouri State Fair expected in June
COVID-19 case numbers might differ among state and local health authorities because of issues with reporting and address verification.
UPDATE 8:00 P.M.: Officials are working through the challenges of COVID-19 as they plan the 2020 Missouri State Fair.
According to a news release Wednesday, officials are moving forward with preparations for the fair. Those preparations include communicating with health officials and state and local elected officials.
According to the release, officials expect to announce a decision about what the fair will look like sometime in June.
They said they have altered timelines and “are looking at things from all angles.”
The release said exhibitors can find schedules and important information including official rules for contests and shows in the Online Premium Guide. Entry forms are not being released until a decision about the fair has is made.
UPDATE 5:30 P.M.: Boone and Callaway County courts will reopen Monday under an order issued Wednesday by Presiding Judge Kevin Crane, but limits on occupancy and other COVID-19-related regulations will be in place.
Under the order the courts will increase their in-person proceedings after a virtual halt under stay-at-home orders meant to slow down COVID-19. However, social distancing rules will be in place -- with spaces marked off -- and building occupancy limits will be enforced under the order.
Evictions remain suspended through June 1, however.
The court will provide masks to the public and allow defendants, lawyers and others with interests in proceedings to participate remotely if they are at high-risk from the worst COVID-19 complications.
The circuit is also working with cleaning crews to ensure extra attention is paid to common areas and areas such as handrails that are touched by numerous people. Staff members will wear masks and will maintain distance from the public.
Cases stable in Boone, Callaway, Cole counties
Boone, Callaway and Cole counties reported no new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, continuing a streak of several weeks with slow case growth.
Boone County remained at 100 total cases Wednesday, with five of them active, representing no change from the day before.
Callaway County health officials counted 22 total cases with only one active.
Cole County reported 54 cases with only two active.
UPDATE 5 P.M.: Traffic at Columbia Regional Airport dropped 92 percent in April as people stopped flying amid COVID-19-related fears and shutdowns.
The airport saw only 1,045 total passengers last month, counting those boarding and exiting commercial flights at the airport. That's down from 13,281 in April 2019 -- a month that already had depressed traffic numbers thanks to a bump in the runway that caused carriers to halt flights.
In April 2018, 20,617 passengers used the airport.
The April 2020 number is the lowest in at least the last 10 years -- a period which includes an expansion of the number of flights and destinations served by the airport.
In March, the month when the COVID-19 pandemic began, 12,388 passengers used the airport. That was down 42.5 percent from the year before.
Two city officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the numbers.
UPDATE 4:10 P.M.: The University of Missouri has identified a date for some employees to return to campus.
MU said in a news release Wednesday that top officials have identified May 20 as the first day some workers will return under the Show Me Renewal initiative.
This first phase of the plan will allow select faculty and staff, university leaders, graduate students and researchers to return to campus, MU said. The employees will have to abide by policies including social distancing and enhanced hand washing and cleaning rules.
“Working with our experts and local, state and federal health officials, we will take a gradual, phased approach to resuming important research activities on campus,” Provost Latha Ramchand said. “Research is the key to fighting emerging diseases, such as the coronavirus, and it’s important that we allow our scientists to get back into their labs and continue this work that is so important to our state and nation.”
Other employees will continue to work from home, according to the news release.
MU ended in-person classes and sent most employees home in March as the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated in Missouri. Interim Chancellor Mun Choi has said leaders hope to have in-person classes return in the fall, but MU has not made a decision yet.
This week Choi asked groups of faculty and staff experts to draw up plans for returning to campus, according to the news release.
Missouri River Regional Library sets reopening date
Missouri River Regional Library buildings in Jefferson City and Linn will reopen May 26.
The library system outlined its plan for a gradual reopening in a news release Wednesday. Services will be limited when the buildings open and social distancing requirements will be in place.
Curbside pickup under limited hours began this week. When the buildings open the library will go to longer, though still limited, hours.
Due dates for materials checked out before March 18 have been extended to June 1.
Items returned to the library will be quarantined for 72 hours before being put out for loan. Visit the library website for more information.
UPDATE 2:10 P.M.: Missouri's total COVID-19 cases increased by 136 on Wednesday.
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services reported 10,142 cases statewide Wednesday afternoon, up from 10,006 on Tuesday. The department reported 18 more deaths, bringing the total to 542.
The total increase in cases was up from 88 reported Tuesday but new deaths rose by half of Tuesday's increase. The state continues to see slower growth in new cases than at the height of the pandemic.
Last week businesses reopened after the lifting of a statewide stay-at-home order -- a move criticized by some as coming too early. Some local areas such as Boone County remain under their own orders which are more restrictive to business and movement than the state's order.
On Tuesday the state passed 10,000 cases and 500 deaths. The state death total jumped 36, one of its biggest increases since the start of the pandemic. State officials said the number was inflated by a delay in reporting in one jurisdiction that began April 24.
The Missouri Hospital Association reported 787 hospitalized patients as of Tuesday -- an increase of 38 in the last 24 hours. Of those, 140 were on ventilators.
St. Louis County continues to lead the state in cases, reporting more than 3,900. The state reported 224 cases in Mid-Missouri hot spot Saline County.
The health department on Tuesday in its social media accounts highlighted testing data, showing how much the number of tests statewide increased form the state of the pandemic through May 2.
UPDATE 11:27 A.M.: The 19th Circuit Court announced it extended COVID-19 measures through the end of the month following direction from the Missouri Supreme Court.
According to the announcement on the court's website, it could reopen on June 1 if "there are no adverse pandemic developments."
The statement said only 10 people will be allowed inside a courtroom or office during the initial reopening phase. It included that only one visitor can enter the courthouse at a time and that everyone entering the building will be screened for COVID-19 symptoms.
The court has given priority to felony and juvenile cases, as well as, orders of protection, custody cases with allegations of abuse and emergency guardianships.
Workers have marked off areas around the building to maintain social distancing. The announcement said all people in the courthouse have to wear a mask.
UPDATE 9:02 A.M.: The Pulaski County Health Center is set to hold two free COVID-19 testing events Saturday and Sunday.
The health center posted on Facebook that the drive-thru testing events will be held at the St. Robert Community Center.
Pulaski County residents can get tested 8 a.m. - 8 p.m. both days. Workers from Pulaski County and Phelps Health will conduct the tests, the health center said.
The health center said residents can get tested even if they don't have COVID-19 symptoms.
ORIGINAL: People in Boone County will have access to COVID-19 testing without a doctor’s note Wednesday.
Mobile testing will be available from noon until 4 p.m. at Paquin Tower in Columbia.
The testing is a collaborative effort by the Harry S, Truman Memorial Veterans Hospital, Boone Hospital Center, University of Missouri Health Care and the Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services.
The mobile operation began on May 4 and, as of Monday, at least 83 tests had been performed.
The county health department’s medical director said the testing will continue to be available every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Future times and locations have not yet been announced.
