Governor Justice Public Briefing will be held at 1 pm today
You can watch it here :
Beginning Monday, May 11, 2020, the Raleigh County library will be open for curbside service from 9 am to 2 pm Monday through Saturday. A staff member will be available by phone at 304-255-0511 x 111 to take your requests and schedule a pickup time starting Monday. You can also request items by logging into your account on our online catalog and searching for items you would like to hold.
CLOROX CEO WARNS DISINFECTANT WIPES WON’T BE FULLY IN STOCK UNTIL THIS SUMMER: Clorox wipes likely won’t be fully back in stock until summer. Clorox Chairman and CEO Benno Dorer says that the company is “making tremendous progress,” and that he predicts they will “be in substantially better shape by the summer.” Clorox saw a 500% spike in consumer demand as the pandemic began, and despite increasing their production 40% they simply cannot produce enough of the product to keep up. (Delish)
HATFIELD-MCCOY TRAILS REOPENING
On Friday, Gov. Justice announced that as part of his statewide reopening plan, West Virginia Strong – The Comeback, the Hatfield-McCoy Trail System will be permitted to open, with limitations, on Thursday, May 21, 2020.“I’ve gotten an awful lot of feedback from a lot of different people, from our tourism people to medical experts, to people from other states,” Gov. Justice said. “We’ve weighed a lot of different factors.“We know how important the Hatfield-McCoy Trails to us, economically, in the southern part of the state,” Gov. Justice continued. “I am happy about reopening the trails but I am also concerned. There’s going to be limitations and we’re going to enforce the limitations as best as we possibly can.”All public buildings and public restrooms along the trail system will remain closed until further notice.The trails themselves will be open for riding, provided that riders follow the following safety guidelines:
PPE: Riders are encouraged to wear face masks or face shields while stopped. All riders, by law, must wear a helmet while riding.
Self-screening: Riders are encouraged to self-screen for COVID-19 symptoms by CDC guidelines.
Temperature checks: Riders are encouraged to take their temperature prior to arriving at the trails. If their temperature measures over 100 degrees, the riders are not permitted to enter the trails.
Sick rider: Any rider or visitor who exhibits COVID-19 symptoms must leave the trails immediately and seek medical care and/or COVID-19 testing, per CDC guidelines.
Limit groups: Riders are prohibited from congregating on the trails.
Physical distancing: Practice proper social distancing, including a minimum of six feet of distance where practical and safe to do so.
Shared vehicles: Riders are discouraged from sharing a UTV, ATV, or off-road dirt bike with anyone outside their immediate group or party.
Shared equipment: Riders are discouraged from sharing safety equipment or masks.
EXECUTIVE ORDER FILED FOR UPCOMING WEEK 3 REOPENINGS
On Friday, Gov. Justice officially signed and filed the Executive Order that will allow businesses in the “Week 3” phase of the Governor’s reopening plan to resume operations if they so choose.Businesses that are part of the Week 3 reopenings include drive-in movie theaters and wellness centers operated by or with West Virginia Licensed Health Care providers.
“THE COMEBACK” SCHEDULE REMINDER
Also on Friday, the Governor offered a reminder about the current reopening schedule for The Comeback plan:
Week 1 – Thursday, April 30 (underway)
Week 2 – Monday, May 4 (underway)
Week 3 – Monday, May 11
Week 4 – Monday, May 18
Week 5 – Monday, May 25
Week 6 – Monday, June 1
This schedule may be altered if changes to the timeline are deemed necessary for the safety of West Virginians.
The Governor also provided a reminder that on this coming Monday, May 11, businesses included in the Week 4 phase of reopenings will be announced so they have adequate time to prepare to resume operations while following all additional guidelines.
GOV. JUSTICE DISCUSSES REOPENING PLAN IN NATIONAL TV INTERVIEW
Gov. Justice took part in another national interview on the Fox Business program Cavuto: Coast to Coast on Friday to discuss West Virginia’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.During the segment, the Governor praised his fellow West Virginians for doing what has needed to be done to protect their neighbors and keep transmission numbers as low as possible.”We’ve done a lot of the right things,” Gov. Justice said. “We’ve had a lot of great experts that have weighed in and the people of West Virginia have done the right stuff.”
GOV. JUSTICE TAKES TO NATIONAL AIRWAVES TO TELL WEST VIRGINIA’S STORY
Also Friday, Gov. Justice participated in a national radio interview on Fox News Radio’s The Brian Kilmeade Show to continue discussing West Virginia’s progress in handling COVID-19.”We’re going to continue looking at our numbers,” Gov. Justice said. “We have witnessed a miracle in West Virginia.”You look at West Virginia…it is the highest-risk state and we are sitting right in the middle of the hottest spot in the country,” Gov. Justice continued. “But we have pitched unbelievable numbers.”We have been on top of it. We were the first in the nation to test all our nursing homes, now we’re the first in the nation to test all of our assisted living facilities.”
COVID-19 DATA UPDATE
Once again, Gov. Justice provided an overview of statewide data on COVID-19, highlighting that West Virginia’s growth rate of positive tests dropped to 1.8 percent.The Governor also pointed out that the state cumulative rate of positive tests decreased, yet again, to 2.20 percent – the state’s lowest figure in that category since before the pandemic arrived in West Virginia.View the latest COVID-19 data at Coronavirus.wv.gov.
CITY AND COUNTY GUIDANCE
Additionally, the Governor announced that he hopes to be able to provide guidance for cities and counties to use to apply for funding from the CARES Act by next Friday.“We have been in constant communication with all of our cities and counties and the associations that represent them, “I know they need our help.” Gov. Justice said, pointing out that more clarity may become available once the United States House of Representatives returns to session.
WEST VIRGINIANS URGED TO PARTICIPATE IN CENSUS
Once again, Gov. Justice asked all West Virginians to participate in the 2020 United States Census.“Every day, I encourage you more and more and more about the Census, to make sure everybody’s counted” Gov. Justice said. “That’s a pretty simple thing to get more dollars to the state of West Virginia.”Every West Virginian who does not respond to the Census represents a loss of $20,000 in federal funds over the next ten years for the state and its local communities. The funds can go toward things like healthcare, education, infrastructure, school lunch programs, and more.Complete your survey online in minutes at 2020census.gov.