KIRX News

With 17 new COVID-19 cases since last Friday, Adair County’s overall case count is at 3,082. There are currently 135 active cases and 2,919 people who have left isolation. Females account for 13 of the 17 cases. Three cases reside at addresses with at least one other confirmed case and two are in the higher education sector. Two of yesterday’s cases have been admitted to Northeast Regional Medical Center. The 54-year-old female was admitted Aug. 22 and the 83-year-old male was admitted Aug. 21. A previously reported 59-year-old male was admitted to NRMC Aug. 22. A 33-year-old male who has been hospitalized at NRMC since Aug. 4 was discharged Aug. 22. None of these cases require a ventilator.

The City of Kirksville’s contractor is continuing asphalt street surface repairs and work will resume today on Cottonwood Street, Gardner Street, and Walnut Street. Overall construction is expected to last approximately one to two weeks, dependent upon weather. The precise street locations are as follows:

• Cottonwood Street, from Main Street to Osteopathy Street
• Gardner Street, from Centennial Avenue to Osteopathy Street
• Walnut Street, from West Burton Street to Potter Avenue

These repairs include milling the old street surface and overlaying with new asphalt. Traffic control will be in effect, and may be reduced to one lane, or possibly closed at times, during construction. Parking will not be allowed during construction.

Adair County ended last week with a seven-day total of 118 newly confirmed cases of COVID-19. On Friday, the Adair County Health Department reported 20 cases. The overall count is 3,065 with 140 active cases, 2,897 people who have left isolation and 28 known COVID-related deaths. The new cases on Friday range in ages from 15 months to 78 years old. Eleven of Friday’s cases reside at addresses with at least one other confirmed case. One case is in the higher education sector, and one is an employee of an area meat processing plant.

Elsewhere in Northeast Missouri, the active case count in Knox County jumped to 36. Contact tracing is ongoing. The Knox County Health Department is recommending masks when indoors and when in large crowds.

The Sullivan County Health Department confirmed two additional positive cases of COVID-19 on Friday. The positive cases have been determined to be community-related

Broadband infrastructure improvements are on the way. Governor Mike Parson last week announced plans to deploy more than $400 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds to increase broadband internet access, adoption, and assistance statewide. Parson said investing in broadband infrastructure is critical to unlocking the state’s full economic potential and will serve Missourians for generations to come. The Governor said the plan was developed through a multi-agency effort designed to address a diverse range of broadband connectivity challenges and is expected to impact hundreds of thousands of Missouri families. The plan will be presented to the Missouri General Assembly in January for appropriation.

Summer is coming to a close, and with it are schedule changes at the Aquatic Center. The wading pools in the city are now closed for the season, and the outdoor Water Park at the Kirksville Aquatic Center will switch to a limited schedule after today. The outdoor Water Park will open on weekends until Labor Day when it closes for the season. The indoor pool will remain open throughout the winter. More information on hours can be found at: kirksvillecity.com/kac

The Adair County Health Department confirmed another 22 new cases of COVID-19 yesterday. The overall total is now 3,045 with 137 active cases and 2,880 people who have left isolation. Five cases reside at addresses with at least one other confirmed case. One case involves an employee in the skilled nursing facility sector. Two cases have been confirmed as breakthrough infections of fully vaccinated people. Two hospitalized residents were discharged Aug. 17, including a 75-year-old male admitted to the VA Hospital in Columbia July 29 and a 60-year-old female admitted to Northeast Regional Medical Center Aug. 15. A fully vaccinated 77-year-old male whose case was reported Aug. 16 was admitted to NRMC Aug. 17. None of these residents required ventilators.

Troop B of the Missouri State Highway Patrol will be participating in a statewide DWI Saturation that runs from tonight through August 21, at 2am. The goal of this operation is to detect impaired drivers, hazardous moving violations, speeding, and other traffic violations that contribute to traffic crashes.

Summer is coming to a close and it is time for students to go back to school. Students with Truman State University, AT Still University and the Kirksville area schools will soon be back in full swing. The Kirksville Police Department is sharing some traffic safety tips to make this school year a safe one. For drivers, Buckle Up Phone Down. Expect the unexpected! When backing out of a driveway or leaving a garage, watch out for children walking or bicycling to school. Also, remember it’s a state law that vehicles in both lanes must stop when a school bus has its red warning lights flashing and the stop sign is extended. Find the link to a resource with more tips for drivers, for students, and for those riding bikes to school on the Kirksville Police Department’s Facebook page.

Residents in Green City are unable to use their post office for now. The post office is temporarily closed due to saftey concerns. The city posted online that the safety issue is the East wall of the facility. All delivery routes will stay the same. But those who have a PO box or need to physically go into the Post Office to mail something, will have to go to the post office in Green Castle. The City says the Mayor is in constant contact with the Postal Service to find a solution to this issue so residents can get their Post Office back. The city will be posting updates on their Facebook page.

Adair County’s overall COVID-19 case count passed the 3,000 mark yesterday and reached 26 new cases for the second consecutive day. The count now stands at 3,023 with 119 active cases and 2,876 people who have left isolation. Two of the new cases are in the higher education sector and 10 reside at addresses with at least one other confirmed case.