Klickitat County is now at 11 total positive cases for COVID-19, but Klickitat County Emergency Management Director Jeff King said seven of those have fully recovered.  King said Tuesday morning that those seven had met one of two standards for recovery, either a 14-day isolation period or have gone 72 hours without symptoms that have not been suppressed by medication.  Nine of the confirmed cases in Klickitat County have been in the central part of the county, with the other two in the western portion.  Klickitat County has registered 208 negative tests for COVID-19 as of Tuesday afternoon.  One Klickitat County resident was reported to have died from the virus late last month.  King is urging people to continue with social distancing measures, saying they are working to prevent spread of the virus.  Skamania County Monday reported its second COVID-19 case, with 37 negative tests.  The state of Washington as of Tuesday afternoon had reported 8,682 cases with 394 deaths, and 79,136 negative tests.

Wasco County remains at seven total positive COVID-19 cases and Sherman County is at one, while there are none in Gilliam County.  Bob Palmer is part of the unified command for Wasco, Sherman, and Gilliam counties, and said they need people to maintain their social distancing measures.  Palmer said they have been fortunate to this point with personal protective equipment, noting the state is pushing out supplies but asking local officials to purchase their own.  He says that is difficult because PPE is in short supply from vendors, and everyone has a need for them.  They are taking donations of PPE, call 541-370-1380 to make arrangements on how they can help.

Hood River County is still at two total positive COVID-19 cases.  Hood River County Emergency Management Director Barb Ayres says they are continuing to amass personal protective equipment from all sources, and they are using a number of volunteer liaisons in the field to monitor different needs in the community to learn where there are needs to fill.  There is also rumor control, and Ayres is advising residents to use vetted sources for information.  Hood River County’s website to deal with the pandemic is called getreadygorge.com, and it has information and links for a variety of topics.

An additional seven miles of the Historic Columbia River Highway will close during the day starting at 8 a.m. Wednesday to ensure the health and safety of State Parks staff and the general public.  Last week, the Oregon Department Of Transportation closed the Historic Highway from Angel’s Rest to Ainsworth, a seven mile section of road, around the clock.  All of the Historic Columbia River Highway State Trail has been closed since last month.  On Wednesday, a seven-mile section from Larch Mountain Road to Angel’s Rest will close every day from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.  Vista House, Multnomah, Horsetail, Shepperd’s Dell, Wahkeena and Latourell falls and other recreation destinations in the corridor remain closed twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.  An ODOT statement said crews along the road see more than 200 vehicles an hour with many visitors violating barricades, some throwing closure signs off the road and many trespassing into closed parks and trails. In addition, official crews in the area report contacting visitors about once every four minutes while trying to maintain the closure of recreational facilities.  The new closure points will be staffed by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department.  Access for local residents and emergency services will be maintained.

With warmer and sunnier weather arriving in Oregon, emergency officials are reminding people to keep practicing social distancing that has been helping to flatten the curve of COVID-19 infections.  Oregon Office of Emergency Management Director Andrew Phelps said it’s fine to go outside, but don’t participate in group sports or attend large social gatherings, don’t hike on crowded trails, don’t travel too far from home, and if you’re not feeling well don’t go outside.  Local, state, and federal agencies are continuing their “Do The Right Thing” campaign to prevent recreationalists from going on to closed public lands in the Columbia River Gorge.  Rachel Pawlitz of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area said the campaign did make a big difference in overall reduction of visitors last weekend, but there also continued to be one or two cars parked at most trailheads.

Oregon’s Office of Emergency Management expects to receive 78 pallets of personal protective equipment on Wednesday.  OEM Director Andrew Phelps made the announcement during a media briefing Tuesday afternoon, saying the shipment will come from the federal agency U.S.A.I.D.  He said it will be dispersed to counties and tribes around Oregon.  Phelps said his agency has distributed over a million masks, faceshields, and gowns, and over 1.5 million gloves.  But he added that the supply still doesn’t meet the demand.

The Oregon Health Authority reported 64 new positive tests for COVID-19 on Monday, but none in the Mid-Columbia area.  The statewide number moved up to 1,132, of which 404 have required hospitalization.  Wasco County remains at seven reported cases, Hood River County two, and Sherman County at one.  Two deaths was reported by the OHA on Monday, bringing that total to 29.  They were a 93-year-old man in Washington County and a 70-year-old woman in Marion County, both with underlying health conditions.  There have been 20,669 negative tests for COVID-19 in Oregon, including 195 in Wasco County and 182 in Hood River County.  In Washington, Skamania County Monday reported its second COVID-19 case.  Klickitat County has reported eight cases during the outbreak.  The latest COVID-19 numbers in Washington show 7,984 total cases in the state, with 338 fatalities and 83,391 negative tests.  There have been 136 negative tests in Klickitat County, and 37 in Skamania County.

Public land closures in the Gorge may have dissuaded some from coming to the Gorge, but some apparently came anyway.  The Skamania County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement that despite public lands closures, visitation to those lands remained high as people converged at parks, sites, and trails.  The Sheriff’s Office says agencies in and around Skamania County contacted dozens of recreationalists over the weekend and issued citations to many of them.  Hood River County Forestry Director Doug Thiesies told County Commissioners during a virtual worksession Monday that the Commission’s closure of the County Forest on Thursday did have some effect, estimating use was reduced by 70 to 80 percent, but there were still some on the trails.  More than a dozen federal, state and local agencies in and around the Columbia River Gorge have been engaged in a social media campaign to encourage outdoor enthusiasts to “do the right thing” and comply with public health directives to stay home and reduce the spread of COVID-19.  Those agencies have temporarily closed lands and water access to adhere to state executive orders.

A measure authored by Washington 14th District State Representative Gina Mosbrucker to create a workplace domestic violence task force was among 147 bills and supplemental budget appropriations Governor Jay Inslee vetoed on Friday in an effort to save money to address COVID-19 repercussions in Washington.  The Goldendale Republican said the veto was disappointing but very understandable given the need to adjust the state budget to deal with the coronavirus.  She plans to bring back the bill in the next legislative session.  Mosbrucker did note the supplemental capital construction budget remains untouched.  That budget includes $250,000 for a new domestic violence shelter in Goldendale.

Law enforcement officials are warning of an uptick in potential scams during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Among the scams being reported:  robocalls purporting to offer respirator masks with no intent on delivery…fake Covid-19 related apps and websites that install malware or ransomware…phishing emails asking for donations or other monetary contributions allegedly going toward Covid-19 response and relief…social media scams fraudulently seeking donations or claiming to provide stimulus funds if the recipient enters their bank account information…sales of fake testing “kits”, cures, “immunity” pills and protective equipment…fraudulent offers for free Covid-19 testing in order to obtain Medicare beneficiary information which is used to submit false medical claims for unrelated, unnecessary, or fictitious testing or services…and prescription drug schemes involving the submission of medical claims for unnecessary antiretroviral treatments or other drugs that are marketed as purported cures for Covid-19  If you, or someone you know believes they are subject to a COVID-19 related scam, report it to the U.S. Department of Health 24-hour hotline at 800-HHS-TIPS or contact your local law enforcement office.