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COVID-19 deaths now at 14 in Wisconsin, first death reported in northern Wisconsin

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The death toll from COVID-19 is now up to 14.

New deaths were reported in Milwaukee, Ozaukee and Iron Counties. That death in Iron County was also the first positive detection in the county.

The Department of Health Services says the total number of confirmed cases is also up to 842, but is probably a lot more. Dr. Ryan Westergaard says that the likely total number of people with the infection could be up to 10 times as many people, but that most people who have the disease are not being tested for it. 

All of the state’s counties are listed as having a high chance of infection at this point. Dane County health officials put out an alert on Friday stating that community spread is in place in the county, and that anyone who ventures out into public should assume they’re being exposed to COVID-19.

 

Gov. Evers confirms first two deaths from COVID-19 infection

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State health officials and the Governor’s office are confirming the first deaths of the COVID-19 coronavirus.

Governor Tony Evers and staff from the Department of Health Services confirmed Thursday night that two people have died from the COVID-19 coronavirus.

One of the victims was a man in his 50’s from Fond Du Lac County. The other victim was a man in his 90’s from Ozaukee County.

Evers says that his heart goes out to the families of the victims, and to everyone who’s dealing with the infection in Wisconsin. “We are committed to fighting the spread of COVID-19 in Wisconsin. Together we will get through this historic health challenge.”

Over 150 people have tested positive for the virus in Wisconsin as of Thursday afternoon.

Help your kids cope with COVID-19 isolation with tips from UW-Madison

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A disease outbreak can be scary for many people, but fear and uncertainty can really harm a child’s growth as well. 

UW-Madison psychology professor Travis Wright says it’s best to focus on what people can do to help each other in a crisis, rather than on the crisis itself. 

“These kinds of opportunities are moments that we can frame for children how to think about the world.”

Wright says that giving kids a gloom and doom vision of the world without a good way to frame it so that they have some way to control or help things is a good way to foster bad mental habits into the future. Kids can easily pick up on the fears of people around them, so it’s good to try and focus on things that they can handle. 

“If we frame this as a time of hysteria, as a time of self interest, as a time of fear? I think that’s a message that kids are going to internalize about the world.”

“In every sort of scary moment there’s an opportunity to see how strong we are, and I definitely think that’s a message we can share with children right now to help them feel safer and also more connected to each other and the world.”

Wright suggests limiting TV and social media time while your kids are out of school, and be sure to work with your school to continue the learning process once school districts get up to speed with long distance learning. 

Other general tips include: 

-Make yourself available when children do raise concerns.

-Avoid excessive blaming of the government, other countries, etc.

-Monitor social media and television viewing to prevent children from becoming saturated with scary messages.

-Maintain a normal routine.

-Know the symptoms of COVID-19.

-Review and model basic hygiene and healthy practices for protection.

-Communicate with your child’s teacher to ensure that your messages are aligned.

Mayor says incident in Superior shows need for regional bomb squad

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It was not a pipe bomb that shut down a main thoroughfare in Superior for hours on Tuesday. But Mayor Jim Paine told KDAL that the object spotted outside the city’s fire hall was deemed a credible threat.

“That means that we can’t rule out that it’s a hoax. We got an actual suspicious device that could be a bomb. That’s what a credible bomb threat means.”

A Police Department robot was able to handle the device and determine it to be inactive, but containing a grainy residue. It will be sent to the Wisconsin Crime Lab for testing.

Paine said the incident highlighted the fact that the nearest bomb squad is more than three hours away, in Marathon County.

“I’m aware that there’s one at the airbase in Duluth, but that is part of the Minnesota Air National Guard and therefore can’t operate in Wisconsin right now. So we’ve got a little bit of a political challenge trying to make the partnership there, or a financial challenge trying to create a regional bomb squad that can serve us up here in the north.”

The pipe bomb was spotted by a passerby at about 9:15 AM on Tuesday, outside the city’s new fire hall. The response blocked off Tower Avenue/WI 35 for several hours.

KDAL contributed to this report 

Bipartisan lawmaker group seeks to increase funding for UW-System MIA recovery program

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The UW System’s Missing In Action Recovery and Identification program could be getting a boost from lawmakers.

State Senator Mark Miller is part of a group that wants to help secure more state funding to bring home lost and missing soldiers. “Most of us recognize the significance of bringing back out missing members of the military. This legislation will provide additional resources to help make that happen.”

State Senator Dale Koyenga says it’s a mirror to efforts being made by the Defense Department.

“Wisconsin will be the only state in that country that has a designated funding source and statutory language to help out the University of Wisconsin to support these efforts.”

MIA-RIP team leader Charles Konsitzke says they’re working to help identify and bring home Wisconsin’s 15-hundred M I A soldiers. 

“With this bill it is time for the state of Wisconsin and the University of Wisconsin to lead this great nation to recover, repatriate and identify our lost service members.”

The bill would increase funding for the program by 180-thousand dollars a year and make Wisconsin the only state to have it’s own fully dedicated M I A recovery program. 

AAA says more Wisconsinites are dying in red light crashes

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Triple-A says more people are dying in crashes at intersections than in years past, and that’s likely because more people are running red lights.

Spokesman Nick Jarmuz says people need to remember their traffic safety rules and that you’re supposed to slow down for a yellow. 

“Misinterpreting what a yellow means, and just try to go ahead even when they could stop before the light turns red.”

Many communities in Wisconsin have turned to red light cameras to try and deter red light running, but Jarmuz says AAA is wary about using them as a purely revenue generating system.

“Certainly in places where there is a strong public education campaign, there is more of a deterrent effect.”

Twenty two people died in red light crashes in Wisconsin last year, a 150 percent increase over the long term average. 

 

FEMA approves disaster declaration

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The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has issued a major disaster declaration for 17 Wisconsin counties and two tribesaffected by severe storms, tornadoes, and flooding in July.

The declaration comes after Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers last week formally requested a federal disaster declaration for affected areas. The counties named in the declaration are Barron, Clark, Forest, La Crosse, Langlade, Menominee, Monroe, Oconto, Oneida, Outagamie, Polk, Portage, Rusk, Shawano, Vernon, Waupaca and Wood.

The Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin and the St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin were also included. Marinette County was included in the governor’s request letter but is still under review by FEMA.

“We are glad the federal government moved quickly to approve disaster assistance for folks that were devastated by the severe storms last month,” Evers said “This is an important step in helping communities across our state rebuild and recover.”

The declaration allows local governments to apply for assistance, which will help communities recover some of the costs incurred through emergency protective measures, repairing infrastructure, and removing debris.

Multiple rounds of storms beginning on July 18 and continuing through July 20 brought heavy rain and flash flooding. Strong winds with speeds up to 100 mph downed hundreds of thousands of trees and numerous power lines. Two people were killed during cleanup following the storms. In addition, more than 300,000 customers were without power for days.

The major disaster declaration is for Public Assistance, which covers eligible projects submitted by counties, cities, townships, and certain private, not-for-profit organizations. The program is not for businesses or homeowners as the level of damage in these areas, unfortunately, does not currently meet requirements for federal relief.

Have a Family Communication Plan this school year

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Send the kids to school with a Family Communication Plan. That’s a recommendation from Andrew Beckett with Wisconsin Emergency Management.

“A Family Communication Plan is very important, because it allows kids to have a list of emergency contact numbers so they know who to get in touch with, and how to get in conact with them in the event of an emergency.”

In addition to family members in the immediate area, there should be a contact for someone outside the area. And, “text first, talk later” is a good idea.
“Because a text message will almost always get through. It may not get through right away, it may be delayed a little bit, but you may have an easier time connecting through tex message than you would if you were to try and to place a voice call.”

Keep a copy of your emergency plan on file at your student’s school, and check out ReadyWisconsin’s website for sample communication plans. Beckett also says an emergency kit, with items like a flashlight, non-perishable food items and cash, is a great idea for college students.

Now’s the time to make sure you’ve got flood insurance for your home or business

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If you’re not sure if your home or business’s flood insurance is up to date, now’s the time to check.

FEMA flood insurance liaison James Sink says flood insurance is separate from regular insurance, and it works differently as well. 

“There is a thirty day waiting period for flood insurance policies to come into effect. So it’s really important that they do it long before any flood event happens.”

Even a little bit of water in your basement can cost you plenty.

“It takes about one inch of water to cause 25-thousand dollars of damage. So just a little bit of water causes a lot of damage to an individual’s home.”

Sink says most home insurance policies don’t cover floods, and most flood insurance policies don’t automatically renew, so it’s always good to check and make sure you’re covered.

You can find out more online at http://floodsmart.gov

WEDC to offer micro loans to businesses affected by last month’s storms

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The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation will be distributing a million dollars in loans to companies and businesses affected by last month’s severe weather.

WEDC vice president Mary Gage says these loans are designed to help get businesses back on their feet until full disaster relief comes. 

“That could be their building, their inventory, their belongings. If there’s flooding in their basement and everything’s floating. If they’re displaced for a little bit of time. We want to help these businesses when something unforeseen impacts them. We want to keep them going and keep the employees employed.”

Governor Tony Evers is in the process of trying to get federal disaster aid. If you want to sign up for the loans, log on to http://wedc.org/disasterrecovery to find out how to apply.