The continuing resurgence of the spread of coronavirus COVID-19, and particularly the Delta variant, is now seeing an increase in community activity disruptions.
Thursday and Friday the Emmett School District closed Carberry Elementary School due to a spike in the number of students and teachers either testing positive for COVID-19 or being in direct contact with those who had tested positive and requiring a specific quarantine period.
According to the District in a press release Wednesday afternoon, “Carberry Elementary will not be in session on September 9th and 10th due to a significant increase in COVID-19 confirmed cases and a large number of quarantines for close contact. School at Carberry will resume for students on September 13th.
Parents please continue to keep your student home if they have a fever or other COVID symptoms as we continue to try and manage the spread of the virus within our schools.”
Superintendent Craig Woods confirmed to the Messenger Index Friday evening that classes are anticipated to resume this week at Carberry and attendance at all other Emmett District schools is expected to continue as normal. All information will be updated on Monday and presented to the ESD Board of Trustees at its regular monthly meeting Monday evening.
Events Canceled
Two traditional fall community events in Emmett, however, announced last week that they will not be proceeding with their activities planned for late September or early October.
The Annual Rotary Youth Benefit Dinner and Auction is being postponed until May, 2022. This will be the second consecutive year that one of the largest fund raising events has made made a major adjustments due to the COVID virus spread. It had been scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 18.
Rotary leaders explained their decision in a release to the Messenger Index the middle of last week.
“The Rotary Club of Emmett Foundation Board decided this week that it would be prudent and in the interest of our community to postpone our annual event until May, 2022. Also, we were having sponsors call us to say they were having trouble filling their tables due to the recent increase in Covid hospitalizations in the state of Idaho.
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We thank the merchants of Emmett and all our dedicated sponsors for their support. We will be crediting them for next May’s auction. Items may still need to be collected and once that is complete, the auction will be ready for the May event.”
May was the traditional time slot that the Rotary Auction has been held but it was moved May 2020 to fall 2020 due to the coronavirus spread and eventually resorted to an on-line auction only. The event usually raises funds that are then spread among as many as 25 different youth organizations to support their programs.
Last fall The River Through Time survived through a September lull in the virus spread and staged its annual first-weekend of October living history exposition on the Gem Island Sports Complex.
Sponsored by the Gem County Historical Museum, The River Through Time organizers decided that current conditions were going to make it “nearly impossible to stage a classic event.”
Mike Carr of the Museum Board said that “COVID was a partial consideration as many of our presenters are older and less mobile currently. The location where we were going to have to be this year near the skate park was also not ideal for the kinds of exhibits and demonstrations we have.”
Carr was adamant that plans are already underway to make sure that River Through Time returns the first weekend of October 2022 and it comes back as a “full blown good event.”
To date no restrictions regarding vaccine or mask mandates have been announced in Gem County.
According to State Health and Welfare statistics, the current 7-day rolling positive test numbers in Gem County were 48.0 on Saturday, Sept. 11. That is down from 60.0 reported on Sept. 2 which was the highest rate reported for Gem County in 2021. The previous high in the calendar year was 54.5 on January 9. Last year at this time in September the positive rate was less than 5.4. The highest point reported in Gem County since they started keeping records in spring 2020 was 90.3 on Dec. 9, 2020.
State records indicate that to date 2,282 Gem County residents have effectively tested positive for one of the COVID variants and 47 deaths have been attributed to the virus.