SIUSLAW NEWS | WEDNESDAY, APRIL 1, 2020 | 5A
Changes to local blood drives
By Jared Anderson
Siuslaw News
The Red Cross will be
holding a community wide
blood drive on April 17
from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.,
while the blood drive that
was scheduled to be held at
the Siuslaw Middle School
on Tuesday, March 31, and
Monday, April 6, through
Blood Works Northwest has
been cancelled.
Regarding the Red Cross
blood drive, the event will
be held at Siuslaw Valley
Fire and Rescue’s Main Sta-
tion, 2625 Highway 101.
The drive comes after 386
blood drives have been can-
celled this month, resulting
in more than 10,277 fewer
blood donations, though
the Red Cross states that the
drives are a vital and essen-
tial service.
Blood donations are
needed for a variety of pro-
cedures, from chemother-
apy to assisting in the care
of patients with the novel
coronavirus, COVID-19.
In addition, the Red
Cross stated that there will
be added safety precautions,
including social distancing,
at the drive, and Ore. Gov.
Kate Brown has encouraged
Oregonians to give.
“It’s still safe, and allowed,
under my “Stay Home, Save
Lives” executive order to
donate blood — in fact, I
encourage it,” she wrote in
a statement. “Sign up to
donate with the Red Cross
today.”
The previous blood drive,
which was sponsored by
Bloodworks
Northwest,
was cancelled because the
organization could mitigate
transmission more closely
at one of their regular dona-
tion centers.
To donate in Eugene,
schedule an appointment
online for the Eugene Do-
nor Center, 2211 Willamette
St., visit www.bloodworks
nw.org/donate/locations/
lane.
RHODY from page 1A
According to Hannigan,
because so much has
changed so quickly with
respect to the COVID-19
situation, the Florence Area
Chamber of Commerce is
working hard for member
businesses and the commu-
nity. The chamber is pro-
moting and advancing the
cause of commerce and do-
ing all it can to make Flor-
ence the best place to live,
work, shop, eat, play and
stay — both now, and as the
crisis passes.
“We must be vigilant
in adhering to Gov. Kate
Brown’s recent edicts to ‘stay
home, stay healthy’ and, for
now, to discourage the rec-
reational travel and tourism
we all depend on for a vi-
brant economy,” said Han-
nigan. “A healthy, vibrant
community is essential for
everyone’s success. As a
chamber of commerce, and
as a community at large, our
top priority should be pre-
venting further spread of
COVID-19 and taking care
REGION from page 1A
The
Chamber
is
community.
community.
On Friday, March 27, Siu-
slaw News received a phone
call regarding a rumor circu-
lating that an individual who
worked at a grocer in Flor-
ence had been diagnosed
with COVID-19 and was
currently in isolation.
LCPH debunked the
claim, stating that there are
currently no confirmed cas-
es of the virus in the Siuslaw
region.
The process of informing
the public begins immedi-
ately after a test is confirmed,
according to LCPH. Once
Unite for the greater good at florencechamber.com/chamber/join
FEDERAL from page 1A
We are devoted to making our community a great place to live, work and raise
families. Everything we are and everything we do is in the service of a stronger
Catalyst. Convener. Champion.
© 2020 W.A.C.E.
Western Association of Chamber Executives
When the world careens out of control,
The Siuslaw News is a
calming source of facts and information.
first and foremost, Oregon’s
request for more personal
protective equipment (PPE)
from the nation’s stockpile.”
The lack of PPE has been
an issue faced by medical
first responders in the Flor-
ence area as well as across
the state and the nation.
There are millions of PPEs
on order but the availabil-
ity of the most basic of the
protections — masks and
of each other through these
uncertain times.
“Still, we cannot wait to
welcome visitors back to en-
joy all that Oregon’s Coastal
Playground has to offer as
soon as any restrictions are
lifted, and it is safe to do so.”
Hannigan is working with
civic and business leaders to
continue doing their best to
diligently walk that fine line
between overreacting, un-
der-reacting and respond-
ing to the latest changing
guidelines.
She asks the public to
“carefully and safely support
businesses that are able to
stay open, and to give each
other grace, respect, and en-
couragement and a lot of so-
cial distancing as we all try
to walk that line with them.”
The Chamber’s Visitors’
Center will remain closed
and in-person chamber
events such as Business
After Hours and Noon Fo-
rum have been cancelled
until further notice. Mem-
bers and the community
are encouraged to watch
F l o r e n c e C h a m b e r. c o m
for virtual events from the
chamber that will provide
new and updated resources
for businesses impacted by
the virus. The chamber will
continue to communicate
with the community and
stakeholders through its
weekly email newsletter, the
website, press releases and
social media.
The Florence Rhododen-
dron Festival is Oregon’s
second-oldest floral festival,
bested only by a year by the
Portland Rose Festival, and
sees thousands of visitors
from around the state and
across the country.
“Generations of families
have enjoyed the annual
Florence
Rhododendron
Festival by attending, enjoy-
ing the Davis Shows carni-
val, exhibiting their rhodies,
showing off their classic
cars and motorcycles, being
in the parade and shopping
and dining in Old Town
and all-around town,” adds
Hannigan. “It’s a family tra-
dition, an Oregon institu-
tion. And it’s heartbreaking
to have to cancel it this year.”
family members are notified
of the case by the county,
LCPH will then notify local
authorities of confirmation.
Soon after, LCPH will re-
lease the information they
have publicly through daily
briefings.
Despite there being no
confirmed cases in the Siu-
slaw region, that does not
mean that the virus is not
present in the community.
PeaceHealth Peace Har-
bor representatives recently
stated that it is “likely” that
COVID-19 is in the region,
and an Oregon Health Au-
thority report stated that for
every one confirmed case in
the state, there is a minimum
of four unconfirmed cases.
Both organizations warn
that if residents ignore social
distancing policies, a steep
rise in COVID-19 cases will
occur.
“It is imperative that all
residents stay home now, re-
gardless of the areas where
the positive tests are located,”
said WLEOG spokesper-
son Megan Messmer. “Stay
home, save lives. If you do
need to go out for essentials,
social distance and have a
two-week supply of supplies.
Be prepared, don’t hoard.”
gowns — are still difficult to
purchase given the world-
wide need.
Brown also wanted to
highlight issues that are not
covered by the declaration.
“In addition, a significant
part of our disaster declara-
tion request was for individ-
ual assistance for all Oregon
counties and tribes, includ-
ing childcare assistance, cri-
sis counseling, disaster case
management, disaster legal
services and disaster un-
employment assistance for
Oregonians. That request
is still also pending and
would provide significant
relief to Oregon families if
approved.”
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden
was a signatory to a letter
sent to Trump last week by
the Oregon Congressional
delegation and reiterated
his belief in an email to the
Siuslaw News that the dec-
laration was an important
step in the battle against the
COVID-19 pandemic, but
much more remains to be
done.
“The COVID-19 public
health crisis has hit Oregon
hard, and I am gratified the
delegation’s bipartisan sup-
port of Gov. Kate Brown’s
statewide disaster declara-
tion was successful,” Wyden
said. “While I am glad this
news means FEMA-relat-
ed disaster relief is on the
way to our state, I am de-
termined to keep pulling
out all the stops to access all
suitable equipment from all
sources to make sure work-
ing Oregonians, small busi-
nesses, health care provid-
ers, first responders and so
many others get what they
need in response to this
global pandemic.”
While party rancor con-
tinues on some level in state
politics, as evidenced by last
month’s legislative debacle
at the state house, there is a
shared sense of purpose at
the federal level, according
to Brown.
“This is an unprecedent-
ed public health crisis that
demands a coordinated
national response, backed
by the full resources of the
federal government. I will
continue to work with the
White House and Oregon’s
Congressional Delegation
to fight for access to every
tool available to keep Orego-
nians safe from COVID-19,”
said Brown.
Michael F. O’Hare has
been named the federal co-
ordinating officer for feder-
al recovery operations in the
affected area.
The full text of Brown’s
statement can be read at Or-
egon.gov as can her request
to the administration for the
declaration of emergency.
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