MOST COUNTY COVID-19 CASES IN HERMISTON AND UMATILLA » PAGE A3
Wednesday, april 15, 2020
HermistonHerald.com
$1.50
INSIDE
INTERNET
Companies and school
districts are offering free
and reduce-price internet
options for students
Page » A3
Keeping the economy afloat
GARDENING
Local nurseries are seeing a
jump in business as people
plant more while they stay
at home.
Page » A7
WRESTLING
Hermiston’s Sam Cadena
named All-EO Wrestler of
the Year.
Page » A10
BY THE WAY
Sen. Wyden
to hold virtual
town hall
on Friday
staff photo by Ben lonergan
Workers sit behind clear panels at Umatilla Electric Cooperative’s new Business Resource Center in Hermiston on Friday afternoon.
Agencies look for ways to help as shutdowns continue
By JADE MCDOWELL
NEWS EDITOR
HERMISTON HERALD
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden
will hold a live, online
town hall open to all Ore-
gonians at 10:30 a.m. on
Friday.
Wyden usually holds at
least one in-person town
hall in each of Oregon’s
36 counties each year, for
a total of 970 so far.
The senator said in a
statement that he always
looks forward “very
much” to the opportunity
to hear from Oregonians
in every part of the state
as they share their views
and ask questions.
“The coronavirus pub-
lic health crisis puts those
in-person
community
meetings on hold for the
moment, but we can still
have these civil conver-
sations that focus on find-
ing productive solutions
that make sense for Ore-
gonians,” he said.
Anyone who wants to
watch the town hall can
do so online at www.
f a c e b o o k . c o m / To w n -
HallProject. People who
wish to submit a question
should fill out the form
found at www.wyden.
senate.gov/town-halls
ahead of time.
See BTW, Page A2
Local businesses may be hoping to
reopen soon after Gov. Kate Brown’s
March executive orders shutting them
down, but it could be a while.
On Tuesday, Brown held a conference
on “reopening” Oregon’s economy, out-
lining the criteria the state would need
to meet before businesses could reopen
safely, without causing a new spike in
cases that could overwhelm hospital
capacity.
“We all want to get back to work
and return to life as normal as quickly
as possible, but the truth is the best path
forward is a cautious one — a path that
proceeds gradually, incrementally and
carefully. A path that relies on science
and facts to determine each step for-
ward,” Brown said.
In consultation with epidemiologists
and public health officials, Brown said
several components would need to be in
place before bans started to lift:
• The growth of new cases would
need to see a declining number of
new cases over a period of time, the
exact metrics of which a panel of
health experts is working to deter-
mine now.
• The state would need adequate
personal protection equipment, such
as gloves and masks, not only for
treatment of COVID-19 patients but
also to resume currently postponed
procedures, such as dental work,
screenings and surgeries for things
that aren’t life-threatening.
• The state would need a “robust
public framework” to ramp up test-
ing capacity and contact tracing in all
parts of the state, quickly identify-
staff photo by Ben lonergan
Closed signs and appointment signs adorn windows in downtown Hermiston last week
as businesses grapple with how to function under Gov. Kate Brown’s stay home order.
ing new cases and isolating them and
their recent contacts.
• All parts of the state would need
the ability to quarantine local cases,
including those who are homeless or
live in group settings, such as nurs-
ing homes.
At that point, Brown said, restric-
tions would slowly lift, likely with new
requirements until a vaccine or reliable
cure is available. Manicurists and hair
stylists may be required to wear masks
and gloves, for example.
While businesses across the country
wait to reopen or resume normal oper-
ations, local, state and federal agencies
are doing what they can to help those
businesses.
Umatilla County is offering $1,000
grants to businesses with 25 or fewer
employees that have been impacted by
COVID-19. Grant applications can be
found at www.umatillacounty.net/grants
and are due April 21.
The federal Paycheck Protection Pro-
gram allows small businesses and non-
profits — those with fewer than 500
employees — to borrow up to 2.5 times
their monthly payroll to pay rent, utili-
ties and payroll for eight weeks.
The loan will be fully forgiven if
borrowers follow the rules of the loan,
including spending at least 75% of the
forgiven amount on payroll and not
decreasing staff or wages during the
time period.
See Economy, Page A12
Schools closed for the rest of the school year
By JADE MCDOWELL
NEWS EDITOR
8
08805 93294
2
It was always a possibility, but
now it’s official: Oregon schools
will remain closed for the rest of the
school year.
Previously the state had left
the door open to in-person classes
resuming at the end of April, but
on April 8 Governor Kate Brown
announced in a press conference
that schools will continue through
distance learning for the rest of the
2019-2020 school year.
“I know there is a lot of anxiety
over how we will move forward,”
she said. “I know our students are
extremely disappointed they are
missing classes, prom and gradua-
tion ceremonies. But the best thing
we can do for the health of our chil-
dren and for thousands of educators
across the state is to give everyone
certainty by announcing the deci-
sion today to close in-person classes
for the remainder of the school year.
School, and learning, will continue
as best as we can by using remote
means.”
She said remote learning could
look like a lot of different things
for students, such as video classes,
interactive online activities, phone
calls and filling out paper homework
packets.
Brown said the decision was
made in consultation with health
and education experts and was
made with the health and safety of
students and school employees in
mind, but acknowledged the burden
See Schools, Page A12
staff photo by Ben lonergan
Umatilla School District Superintendent Heidi Sipe checks in with staff and
volunteers on a bus delivering school supplies to students in Umatilla. Schools
wil be closed the rest of the school year, state officials announced April 8.