The
Durand City Council is meeting tonight. Items on the agenda include
reports from the Mayor and City Administrator. The council will also
discuss issues related to the city's response to the Covid 19
outbreak including utility bill late fees, revolving loan payments, downtown business parking and the spring yard waste clean up. Due
to the covid-19 outbreak and the safer at home orders, WRDN will live
stream the meeting on our Facebook page starting at 6:30. Those with
public comments are encouraged to call city hall as those will be
taken over the phone.
Personal
Protection Supplies from the Federal Government stockpile have
arrived at Advent Health in Durand. Angela Jacobson, Director of
Nursing for Advent Health says along with the supplies, all staff at
the hospital are now required to wear a mask. Jacobson
says the new policy is from Advent Health as the company has spent
$52 million to purchase PPE Supplies.
The
daily reports on the Covid-19 testing in Pepin County is changing.
Pepin County Health Officer Heidi Stewart says the changes are
necessary for consistent information. Stewart
says the county will continue to report any positive test results
once they receive that information from the State of Wisconsin
Department of Health Services.
The
Wisconsin Spring Election was held yesterday. Here in Durand, the
city reported that 166 people cast their ballots in person. Across
Wisconsin there were reports of long lines at some locations as 2400
Wisconsin National Guard members filled in as poll workers. Many
were encouraged to vote absentee and approximately 990,000 ballots
were cast absentee.
The
Dunn County Solid Waste Department is announcing that the hours at
the Boyceville, Colfax and Elk Mound area collection stations will be
extended at the request of residents and to encourage safe social
distancing practices. The stations will now be open Wednesdays from
10am-6pm, and Saturdays from 7am-3pm until further notice. A
reminder that the Connorsville, Ridgeland, Rock Creek and Downsville
Area Collection stations remain closed due to the covid-19 pandemic.
The
Buffalo County Health and Human Services Department is reminding
county residents that if you lost employment, or have reduced hours
and are having trouble paying your utility bills to contact the
department for energy assistance. In addition to the crisis funding
available, the state of WI has made some changes to income
verification process due to the covid-19 pandemic, which may make you
eligible. For more information call Amy Dahl at 608-685-6306.
Hotels
in Rochester are being asked to ease policies that are apparently
preventing local health care workers from renting rooms during the
coronavirus pandemic. The city is formally requesting lodging
and hospitality businesses "to temporarily adjust their
policies" that prevent managers and staff from renting rooms to
local residents. Deputy City Administrator Aaron Parrish says
the city has been receiving reports from medical professionals
seeking temporary facilities and community members looking for safe
spaces to self-quarantine, but they are being turned away from
Rochester hotels. Parish says relaxing the policies will allow
Rochester residents to social distance to protect the health of their
families and other members of our community.
Officials
with Xcel Energy are urging boaters and fishermen to stay away from
the dams at two of the company’s hydro plants. Xcel says high
water levels mean boat restraining barriers haven’t been installed
at the plants in St. Croix Falls and Jim Falls. Those barriers
keep boats away from the powerhouse intakes and the spillway sections
at both locations. Plant manager Randy Volbrecht says boating,
canoeing or kayaking near the dams aren’t recommended until the
river water levels recede.
The
Trump Administration is approving Minnesota's request for a major
disaster declaration to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic. U-S
Senator Amy Klobuchar says this declaration is a step toward making
sure those in need have access to critical resources. It
authorizes federal funding to cover costs for medical assistance,
mental health counseling, hazard mitigation, food, and legal
services. Minnesota could also be reimbursed for the State Emergency
Operations Center, National Guard and law enforcement services.
At
a time when lost jobs are topping the news reports Amazon is moving
in the other direction. The web-based retailer announced Monday
it has hired 700 people for its fulfillment center in Kenosha.
The company says it needed the additional personnel to keep up with
the demand from people who are shopping online rather than go into
brick-and-mortar stores. Amazon says many of its new hires are
workers who recently lost their jobs and needed to get back to work
quickly.
The
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is hoping somebody saw
something when a Tundra Swan was shot in a field in Outagamie County
last month. A worker at the Feather Wildlife Rehab and
Education Center found the bird with a broken right wing in the Town
of Maple Creek. It was taken to the center for treatment and
died six days later. The D-N-R says the fine for shooting a
protected swan could top 23 hundred dollars – plus a three-year
revocation of hunting, fishing and trapping privileges.
The
C-E-O of a Minnesota-based biomedical engineering company says a deal
is being discussed with Foxconn to make ventilators in Wisconsin.
Chairman and C-E-O Omar Ishrak of Medtronic was interviewed on
C-N-B-C Monday. Ishrak said the two companies would like to
make as many of the critical units as possible. Medtronic is
headquartered in Minneapolis while the work would be done at the
plant in southeastern Wisconsin.
Minnesota
officials say tens of thousands of Minnesotans will receive
unemployment benefits sooner due to an executive order issued Monday
by Governor Tim Walz. Employment and Economic Development
Commissioner Steve Grove says the state is no longer required to
delay benefits for people who are taking vacation, sick pay or
personal time off when they apply for unemployment insurance.
Grove said DEED is going to issue payments to 45-thousand people "who
are stuck in our queue right now, far faster than we could have
before." At last count more than 342-thousand Minnesotans
have applied for unemployment benefits since mid-March.
The
Minnesota House and Senate passed legislation today that would
guarantee workers' comp benefits to emergency responders, health care
providers, corrections officers and others who contract COVID-19.
They would receive benefits even if they cannot prove a COVID-19
infection is directly related to their jobs. House Majority
Leader Ryan Winkler says the cost is estimated between 320- and
580-million dollars. Winkler said "we have to get this
protection for first responders right away. If we don't pass this
bill today, they will not have protection tomorrow."
Governor Tim Walz has indicated he will sign it into law right away.
Dodgeville-based
Lands’ End says it has furloughed about 70 percent of its corporate
employees and nearly all of its retail workers. The company
released a statement saying the safety and health of its workers is
the first priority. Lands’ End employees involved in
"critical tasks" will return to the job a week from today
(Tuesday, April 14), but most of the other workers are not expected
back before May 1st. The company’s 26 national stores will
remain closed until further notice, but distribution centers are open
and operational. Online orders are still being filled.
Minnesota
Attorney
General Keith Ellison and U-S Attorney Erica MacDonald are forming
the Minnesota COVID-19 Action Team or M-CAT. It's a coordinated
statewide effort focused on investigating and prosecuting unlawful
activity associated with the coronavirus and enforcing all state and
federal laws and executive orders to put an end to such behavior. The
M-CAT urges the public to report any COVID-19-related criminal
behavior, price-gouging, scams, cyber crimes, hate crimes, or other
unlawful activity to the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office.
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