Thursday, April 9
Lane County Public Health announced two new COVID-19 cases at its press conference on Thursday, bringing the total number of positive cases in Lane County to 33. One of the recent cases is a 66-year-old man who is recovering at home, and the other is a 71-year-old man who is in the hospital. Both patients are from the Eugene-Springfield area and live at private residences.
LCPH spokesperson Jason Davis said that Lane County is accepting homemade masks and St. Vincent de Paul currently needs clothes and feminine hygiene products.
In an email update, the University of Oregon confirmed that it will follow Gov. Kate Brown’s extension on April 8 of the order closing schools throughout the state.
“To adhere to this order, the University of Oregon will remain closed to the public, continuing to operate on a modified status until at least the end of the spring term,” the update said. “With the exception of certain pre-approved on-campus activities or move outs, members of the university community are advised to stay home and, when you must go out, practice social distancing to minimize risk and the unintentional spread of the coronavirus.”
The University Counseling Center’s teletherapy service is now available to students physically located in Colorado, Texas, Oregon and California, the update said.
“Students in need of mental health support are encouraged to call the Counseling Center at 541-346-3227 for help navigating their options, regardless of their location,” the update said.
The Oregon Employment Department reported record initial unemployment claims for the third week in a row Thursday. OED received 100,700 initial claims last week, bringing the total to 269,900 — more than the net jobs lost during the Great Recession.
Wednesday, April 8
EWEB has “nearly tripled” its bill assistance funding and its customer care program now offers a $260 bill credit to any customer who lost a job due to the COVID-19 outbreak, EWEB spokesperson Joe Harwood said at LCPH’s press conference on April 8.
The new bill credit does not include an income threshold, he said, and only requires proof of receiving unemployment benefits from the Oregon Employment Department. Harwood said the response for bill assistance is “unprecedented” and “off the charts.”
EWEB is temporarily suspending service disconnections and late fees for non-payments, and it is allowing customers with commercial and residential energy efficiency loans to defer their loan payments for the time being, Harwood said.
LCPH spokesperson Jason Davis said that St. Vincent de Paul is in “desperate need” of clothing donations and that men’s and women’s underwear are in high demand. Bagged or boxed donations are accepted at 201 Division Avenue, starting April 9 from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m.
University of Oregon academic and school deans took a voluntary pay cut of 10% Wednesday, following an announcement that President Michael Schill, vice presidents and the athletic director would be taking a 12 and 10 percent pay cut, respectively.
Tuesday, April 7
Oregon received one million masks, face shields and gowns, as well as 1.5 million protective gloves, as announced at the Oregon Emergency Management press conference on April 7.
The personal protective equipment was distributed to counties and Native American tribes in the state based on their population and number of confirmed COVID-19 cases. It was also revealed that community members donated 100,000 masks and gloves, as of April 6.
“We are working on only providing PPE to hospitals and healthcare workers that meet OSHA guidelines and have been approved by OSHA in a healthcare setting,” OEM director Andrew Phelps said.
USAID was expected to deliver 78 palettes of PPE by April 8. “We are getting a bunch of stuff that we desperately need,” Phelps said.
Regarding Oregon sending 140 ventilators to New York, Phelps was asked if Oregon had enough ventilators to spare. “Yes, we have a number of ventilators right now that are not being committed to patients so we feel we have that capacity,” he said. “We wanted to make sure those ventilators were where they could do the most good.”
LCPH also announced another known case of COVID-19 at its press conference on April 7, bringing the then-total to 31. The patient, a man in his 60s from the Eugene-Springfield area, was initially hospitalized for an unrelated reason but was tested in the hospital and the result came back positive for COVID-19.
Of the 31 cases, seven were in the hospital, 17 were sick at home, seven had recovered and one had died.
LCPH’s analysis of case growth in other regions, including Italy, indicates that the sharpest rise in new COVID-19 cases typically occurs about six weeks after the first known case is discovered in that area. The first case in Lane County was identified 40 days ago.
“If we’re going to see the high number of cases, we can expect that to be happening in the next few weeks,” LCPH spokesperson Jason Davis said.
Some classes at the university were cancelled due to remote learning for the entirety of spring term, including classes taught at the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology and art and design classes.
For students who decided to cancel their housing contract with the university, the Emerald broke down the process here.
Monday, April 6
LCPH announced at a press conference on Monday that five individuals recovered from COVID-19, while six patients remained hospitalized and eight were sick at home. Officials also said that cloth masks are the best option for custom-made masks, but that they are only necessary when social distancing cannot be observed.
With campus closed to the public, the Knight Library staff recounted their experience transitioning to remote work. Interim Dean of Libraries Mark Watson said out of the 130 employees who work at the Knight Library, 110 of them were working remotely.
ASUO elections began Monday and students were able to vote online via Duckweb through Friday.
Friday, April 3
Lane County Chair Heather Buch announced that the Board of County Commissioners voted to approve purchasing a building to serve as an isolation center at a LCPH press conference Friday. The announcement came after the city reported four new positive cases of COVID-19.
At UO, many students with on-campus jobs were left with an uncertain future. Emerald reporters talked to some of the students who worked on campus and the ways that the campus closure has impacted their financial security.
C. Francis O’Leary, Duncan Baumgarten, Isabel Lemus Kristensen, Jack Forrest, Hannah Kanik and Gina Scalpone contributed to the reporting of this story.
