Hometown Broadcasting News Friday 10/9/20
9 October 2020 News
Fatal Traffic Accident In Waupaca County
Waupaca County Sheriff’s officials say a man driving a tractor was killed when it overturned in a ditch on County Highway K at County Highway N Wednesday afternoon. The tractor was heading south on Highway K when the operator attempted to turn left on Highway N. That’s when the tractor overturned in a ditch. The driver died at the scene. The accident was reported at 1:16 Wednesday afternoon. The Sheriff’s office was assisted at the scene by the County Medical Examiner, Ogdensburg Fire Department, Iola Fire Department, Iola Area Ambulance, and Ogdensburg/St. Lawrence Area First Responders.
Fire Damages Garage In FDL
(Fond du Lac Fire and Rescue photo)
Firefighters in Fond du Lac put out a garage fire shortly after 7:30 Wednesday night. Smoke and flames were coming from the detached two-car garage when Fond du Lac Fire and Rescue crews arrived at 773 Forest Avenue. The fire was contained to the garage, but damaged the garage and its contents. No injuries were reported. The blaze is not considered suspicious, but the cause is being determined.
Prison COVID Deaths Reported
State Department of Corrections officials say an inmate at Oshkosh Correctional died earlier this week, but the cause of death is still being determined. The Winnebago County Coroner’s Office is performing an autopsy and results could take up to six weeks. The prison has seen a COVID-19 outbreak with 382 total cases and 347 of those still active. Meanwhile the DOC says two inmates at Dodge Correctional in Waupun died of the coronavirus.
Second COVID Testing Site Being Added In FDL County
To help with increasing demand for COVID-19 testing needs, a second testing location will be added in Fond du Lac County next Monday that will provide more convenient access to individuals in the Ripon and Waupun areas. Public Health Officer Kim Mueller says patients experiencing COVID-19 symptoms should still call their primary care provider or the COVID-19 Clinic at (844) 225-0147. Patients will complete a screening on the phone before being directed to a testing location. Syed Mohiuddin is the medical director with the Ripon Medical Center and Waupun Memorial Hospital emergency departments. He says despite COVID-19 they are still dealing with all the usual serious, acute and urgent injuries, or illnesses. Ripon Medical Center, St. Agnes Hospital and Waupun Memorial Hospital want to ensure emergency care is available when needed.
Drive Through Flu Immunization Clinic For Children Tomorrow In FDL
The first of three drive-through clinics to immunize children against the flu will be held in Fond du Lac County tomorrow. It will be at the Fond du Lac County Highway Garage in Fond du Lac from 9 am to 2 pm. Any child from 4 to 18 years of age that resides in the county or attends a school in the county will be able to receive a free flu shot. Masks are required and a child should not be brought to the clinic if they are sick or under quarantine for COVID-19. The two remaining clinics will be Saturday, October 24th from 9 am to 2 pm at the Campbellsport Highway Garage, and Tuesday, October 27th from 3:30 to 7 pm at the Brandon Highway Garage.
Governor’s Order Hard On Small Businesses
A member of the Ripon Community COVID-19 Task Force says the Governor’s latest order limiting public gatherings to no more than 25 percent of a room or building’s total occupancy will especially hurt small businesses like restaurants. Jeff Puhlmann-Becker feels up until now restaurants have been a doing a good job with social distancing requirements. “You know it is the tiny restaurants that are going to have the harder time because 25 percent could be six people or something. I’ve been in several places to get some takeout or whatever and where they’ve marked off chairs and chairs are stacked in the back and they really have done a nice job with social distancing.” Puhlmann-Becker feels the tourism industry, especially restaurants and bars are suffering. He says part of the challenge is that there is no way to keep your mask on in those types of establishments.
Piotrowski Runs For 24th State Senate Seat
Paul Piotrowski of Steven Points isn’t quite ready to give up his public service. After a stint in the Navy he served nearly 27 years with the Stevens Point Police Department and after that a year and a half as interim City Clerk. Now he’s running for the 24th State Senate District seat. The district covers portions of Portage, Wood, Waushara, Adams, Jackson, and Monroe counties. Piotrowski is a Democrat and he’s running against the incumbent Senator Patrick Testin who is a Republican. Piotrowski says Testin chairs the Senate’s Health and Human Services Committee, but that committee hasn’t had one hearing about COVID-19. “They have held exactly zero hearings on COVID-19 and providing public information on what the public should be doing. I believe given the situation we are in with a global pandemic we are 8 or 9 months in that’s just a dereliction of duty not to have held even one hearing on such an important topic.” You can find out more about his candidacy at Piotrowksiforsenate.com.
Surveying Businesses About The Economy
As part of a virtual breakfast on the state of the economy next month Envision Greater Fond du Lac will be sending out surveys asking businesses how they are coping in the age of COVID-19. Jim Cleveland is the Vice President of Economic Development for Envision. He says they did surveys in late-April and again in May and businesses weren’t doing bad at the time. “You know at that time as a county we were holding our own pretty well, certainly some job loss as everyone knows. We will do an update of that survey again now here in the next I’m hoping sometime next week it comes out to businesses throughout the county.” He says over the summer there was a lull in COVID cases, but now we are seeing a spike in them. Cleveland says businesses will be emailed the survey so they should watch for that in their inbox.
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