Shifting our lens now to wildfires and Medina County’s massive emergency response to “Das Goat” fire that has made for a very long and difficult weekend. We are very fortunate to have our local emergency responders working around the clock for us. There aren’t enough thank you’s for those that put their lives in jeopardy to help others and protect our homes and property. Seeing State emergency responders stepping in and a visit from Governor Abbott with a local disaster emergency proclamation on Sunday was amazing.
Shelters were opening in some churches and Medina Valley Loma Alta Middle School opened its doors as a Red Cross Shelter on Saturday. Few utilized the shelter at MV Loma Alta Middle School Saturday night but were very appreciative of having that place to go and thankful to the Medina Valley staff present.
Many residents brought in food, drinks, animal kennels, and dog and cat food and were ready to offer more or help out. The Red Cross Shelter moved to Our Lady of Guadalupe Church on Sunday afternoon so the school could be in session Monday. Lake Hills United Methodist Church had opened its doors over the weekend as well with plenty of room for those in need. As of Monday morning and my writing, Medina County Public Health is out and about getting status updates on shelters.With fire emergency response continuing this week, our community and surrounding counties will be working together to help those families affected and to stand by if and when needed.
Everyone, if you haven’t signed up for local emergency alerts, please do so now! In situations like this you would receive evacuation notices. I recommend getting them on your phone as a text and also as an email.
COVID Forecast
The 7-day COVID forecast is looking good with cases falling, low hospitalizations, and a low positivity rate.
Key Messages: (CDC DATA Tracker as of 3/28/2022 prior report date was 3/21/2022)
How many cases are there? Total cases over the last 7 days: 38 cases down from 63
Transmission? Positivity rate: 3.96%slightly up from 3.09%
How many total deaths are there? 197 up 1 death from last week
What can we do about it? Monitor hospitalization rates, continue to watch the next variant BA.2 for changes in the severity of disease, and monitor transmission rates. COVID-19 vaccines are available for ages 5 and up.
Visit the Medina County website under “Coronavirus” or “COVID-19 Vaccine” for more information.
By Trish Mechler, RN, BSN