Wednesday live coronavirus updates: Monroe County Fair canceled
Monroe County Fair canceled
The Monroe County Fair Association announced the 73-year-old fair has been canceled for 2020 due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Fairs and other events that attract large numbers of people are not permitted until Phase 5 of Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s five-phase plan to reopen the state’s economy. Barring an unforeseen and sudden spike in cases throughout southern Illinois, the region will begin Phase 3 on Friday.
Fair board president Don Schrader said in a release that Tuesday’s decision to cancel the County Fair ultimately was made out of concern for volunteers and those who attend the annual event.
“The Board has gone through some difficult weeks of uncertainty as our county, our state and our country have struggled with the coronavirus pandemic,” he said in a statement on the fair website. “The main concern of the Monroe County Fair Board during these weeks has been the health and safety of those who participate in and those who attend the annual county fair. The decision to cancel the fair was made following numerous conversations with the Monroe County Health Department and local officials, all of whom are required to follow the Governor’s Restore Illinois Safety Plan.”
O’Fallon restaurants prepare to reopen
As the reopening of businesses and restaurants begins this week in the region, O’Fallon is adapting to the new Phase 3 of the COVID-19 plan outlined in Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s Restore Illinois Plan.
On May 20, Pritzker announced all bars and restaurants could be open for outdoor service. To temporarily expand outdoor seating options in O’Fallon, the city has created a special event permit that includes use of parking lots, sidewalks, and streets.
Since local restaurants can reopen Friday, May 29, Mayor Herb Roach used his emergency powers for the permit because the city council won’t have the opportunity to vote until the next meeting June 1.
For restaurants in the downtown district, the permit is expected to close a portion of Second Street between Lincoln Avenue and Vine Street and Cherry Street between First Street and Second Street to traffic to allow for outdoor dining.
Business owners say they may close if coronavirus measures continue, SIU survey finds
Some southern Illinois business owners believe they may be at risk of permanent closure within months if “disruption” from the coronavirus pandemic continues, according to a Southern Illinois University Carbondale survey.
The SIU survey on how the coronavirus is affecting local economies received responses from 224 business owners largely in Franklin, Jackson, Jefferson, Perry and Williamson counties.
The survey asked them “if business disruption continues at the current rate, how soon will your business be at risk of closing permanently?” In response, 40% said within one to five months.
Madison County Transit to resume bus fares
Madison County Transit announced it will resume charging fares for bus service on June 1. Some express routes to downtown St. Louis also will be resumed.
MCT suspended fares in March with the shutdown of some businesses due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Tri-City Regional Route, Highland Express Route and Edwardsville-Glen Carbon Express are among the routes that will resume service Monday. Those had been discontinued in March due to lack of ridership.
Face coverings and social distancing measures are required of all riders. Buses will be disinfected “regularly,” according to a release from MCT. Buses will continue to operate at 50% capacity or less. Transfer stations will remain closed.
Residents can renew expired driver’s licenses in offices in June
Driver services facilities will reopen June 2 in southwestern Illinois with new safety measures in response to the coronavirus, Secretary of State Jesse White announced Tuesday.
From June 2 to July 31, the offices will only serve new drivers, people with expired driver’s licenses or identification cards and people with vehicle transactions.
The offices will be open from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday-Friday and 7:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturday.
Customers and employees will be required to wear face masks unless a medical condition prohibits it, according to a news release from the secretary of state’s office. There will be plexiglass dividers at the work stations and tape on the floor to show customers where they can stand 6 feet apart and to limit the number of people inside a facility at a time.
No reopening date, but Six Flags has plans for safety measures
When Six Flags St. Louis reopens, there will be new measures to cut down on the number of people at the amusement park at a time and create distance between people to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
St. Louis media reported Tuesday that the park’s safety measures include an online reservation system with caps on how many people can visit and markers at roller coasters, restrooms and dining areas so people know where to stand to stay at least 6 feet apart.
KSDK reported that people will be separated by empty rows or seats on roller coasters and that the rides, restraints and handrails will be cleaned throughout the day.
Guests and employees will have their temperatures taken before entry, and they will be required to wear face masks.
Ameristar Casino furloughs may become permanent layoffs
Furloughs may become permanent layoffs for between 25% and 60% of the workforce at St. Charles’ Ameristar Casino, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Tuesday.
According to the Post-Dispatch report, the casino’s owner, Boyd Gaming of Las Vegas, filed a notice with Missouri officials last week that said up to 947 employees could be laid off.
Furloughs for employees who are not laid off could last longer than six months, the newspaper reported.
Southwestern Illinois coronavirus cases
A total of 2,362 people in southwestern Illinois have tested positive for COVID-19 and 182 people have died since the pandemic began, health officials reported as of Wednesday.
Here are the latest statistics for southwestern Illinois counties:
- St. Clair County: 1,134 positives, 89 deaths, 6,425 tests administered, 92 tests pending, 59 hospitalizations, 722 recoveries
- Madison County: 551 positives, 58 deaths, 5,398 tests administered, 99 hospitalizations, 291 recoveries
- Randolph County: 267 positives, four deaths, 1,539 tests administered, two hospitalizations
- Clinton County: 178 positives, 17 deaths, 977 tests administered, one hospitalization, 89 recoveries
- Monroe County: 94 positives, 11 deaths, eight hospitalizations, 51 recoveries
- Washington County: 18 positives, 15 recoveries
- Bond County: 12 positives, one death, one hospitalization, six recoveries, 214 tests administered, one test pending
- Macoupin County: 45 positives, one death, 2,492 tests administered, 36 recoveries, three hospitalizations, six tests pending
- Perry County: 41 positives, 37 recoveries
- Jersey County: 20 positives, one death, 17 recoveries
- Calhoun County: One positive, one recovery
State, nation, world coronavirus cases
On Wednesday, the Illinois Department of Public Health announced 1,111 more people have tested positive for COVID-19 and 160 more people have died statewide. Illinois has seen a total of 5,083 deaths across the state during the pandemic and a total of 114,306 people have been diagnosed with the coronavirus.
According to data from John Hopkins University & Medicine Coronavirus Resource Center, this is how many people have been affected by COVID-19 across the nation and world as of 6:30 p.m. Wednesday:
- United States: 1,698,581 people tested positive; 391,508 people recovered; 100,276 people have died.
- World: 5,685,512 people tested positive; 2,347,276 people recovered; 354,983 people died.
Want to help? Here are some ideas
The BND has compiled a list of ways you can help during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Go to BND. com to learn about the opportunities to volunteer your time or donate to help communities in the metro-east without putting yourself or others at risk.
You can sew face masks, read stories for people with vision loss and deliver meals to seniors.
If you know of a recognized charitable organization looking for help that isn’t listed, please tell us about it. Send an email to newsroom@bnd.com or fill out the BND’s Southwest Illinois Coronavirus Service and Assistance Guide online at BND.com.
Get the latest news on coronavirus
BND.com will keep you updated throughout the day with information about the spread of the coronavirus in southwestern Illinois.
You can also find the most complete and up-to-date information from government sites including:
- State of Illinois’ COVID-19 page: coronavirus.illinois.gov
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/cases-updates/summary.html
- Federal government’s coronavirus page: cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
Who to call about mental health
Here are some resources from mental health professionals for anyone struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic:
- Touchette Regional Hospital’s Mental Health Support and Resource Line: Call 618-482-7158 to talk to trained therapy staff.
- Illinois Human Services Mental Health Division’s Call4Calm: Text the word “talk” to 552020 to text with a mental health care professional for free.
- Centerstone of Illinois, Inc.: Call 618-462-2331 for virtual mental health services.
- Chestnut Health Systems: Call 618-877-4420 for virtual mental health services.
- Narcotics and Alcoholics Anonymous: Call 618-398-9409 or email metroeastnapr@gmail.com to learn about virtual meetings.
- Regional Disaster Mental Health Volunteer Response Team: Call a support line for health care professionals at 618-381-5173.
Contact BND with tips, concerns, suggestions
If you have suggestions about something for the BND to cover regarding the COVID-19 pandemic or if you see a report that sounds suspicious on social media or anywhere else, please drop us a note at newsroom@bnd.com and include a link. We’ll check it out.
We’d like to hear from health-care workers
The BND would like to speak with nurses, doctors and other health care professionals who are on the front lines caring for patients in doctor’s offices, clinics and hospitals during this difficult time. We’re interested in hearing about your challenges and rewards, frustrations and accomplishments. How is this affecting you? Send us an email at newsroom@bnd.com.
Willing to share your COVID-19 story?
Have you recovered from coronavirus or are you in the process of recovering from COVID-19? We would like to hear from you on how you dealt with the respiratory disease. Send us an email at newsroom@bnd.com.
This story was originally published May 27, 2020 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Wednesday live coronavirus updates: Monroe County Fair canceled."
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