Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 51
On February 25, the Office of Governor Mark Gordon announced the removal of one health order and the relaxation of other health orders. According to a press release from the governor’s office, the decision comes as Wyoming’s metrics around the coronavirus (COVID-19) continue to improve. Health Order No. 3–which addresses the operations of barber shops, nail and hair salons, tattoo parlors and other personal car services–was eliminated as of March 1. While that health order has been removed, the businesses that were affected by this order m... Full story
Governor Mark Gordon announced Wyoming will remove its statewide mask requirement and allow bars, restaurants, theaters and gyms to resume normal operations on March 16. The decision reflects the state’s continually improving health metrics and is consistent with the Governor’s approach of balancing public health with protecting livelihoods. Wyoming has seen a declining number of active COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, and has seen significant success rolling out the vaccine, with the state’s most vulnerable residents having access to th... Full story
As vaccines continue to roll-out across the state and Carbon County, the staff of Carbon County Public Health are preparing to vaccinate residents over 70 years of age. This comes as the first confirmed case of the "UK Variant" of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) was confirmed in a Teton County resident on Saturday. The first doses of the Moderna vaccine were given on January 19 to senior residents in Rawlins. From there, Carbon County Public Health will travel throughout the county for the... Full story
The Wyoming Department of Health (WDH)) confirmed on January 16 the state’s first case of the “UK variant,” or B.1.1.7 COVID-19 variant has been identified in a Teton County adult male. While further investigation is ongoing, early information suggests exposure to the virus variant occurred locally. Dr. Alexia Harrist, state health officer and state epidemiologist with WDH, said the department is not surprised and expected the variant would be found in Wyoming at some point. “It is not unusual for variants to emerge with viruses and that’s... Full story
A month after updating health orders requiring bars and restaurants to suspend late night service, Governor Mark Gordon has reversed course with new health orders that will be effective on January 9. In a press release from the Office of Governor Mark Gordon dated January 2, the governor announced that bars and restaurants would be able to return to normal operating hours. Under the current health orders, which took effect December 9, bars and restaurants were required to close from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., a move which led to frustration for many es... Full story
Less than a month after multiple county health officers requested approval of mask mandates, Governor Mark Gordon has approved a state-wide health order requiring the use of masks in public places effective today. Along with requiring the use of face coverings, changes to current health orders issued by the governor reduces the operating time of bars and restaurants. Similar to many of the recent health orders issued by county health officers in recent weeks, the state-wide order applies to all... Full story
As millions of Americans travel for the Thanksgiving holiday, the number of active cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) across the state and within Carbon County continue to move upward. Following Governor Mark Gordon’s press conference nearly two weeks ago it was expected a statewide mask mandate would be implemented. Gordon, however, has not issued one while Carbon County and eight other counties have issued county-wide mandates. Gordon did, however, announce new restrictions on gatherings w... Full story
Carbon County School District No. 2 (CCSD2) added two more positive cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) earlier this week as Carbon County’s active cases continue to rise. Additionally, the county has added one more COVID-related death bringing the count to three. On November 8, CCSD2 Superintendent Jim Copeland updated the school district website to include two positive cases in Saratoga. While previous cases had been staff members, the two new cases were students. Copeland wrote that the... Full story
Carbon County School District No. 2 (CCSD2) added three more positive cases over the Halloween weekend according to an announcement from CCSD2 Superintendent Jim Copeland. As has been the case in recent weeks, this trend follows the trend of both the county and the state as Carbon County, as of Monday, had 64 active cases and Wyoming had 5,204. The announcement from Copeland, which can be found on the school district’s website, originally announced two cases on October 31 with one in Saratoga a... Full story
As frigid temperatures visit the Valley, snow falls, and cold and flu season begin, the effects of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) are still being felt seven months after the first cases were reported. Over the weekend, Carbon County School District No. 2 (CCSD2) Superintendent Jim Copeland announced that three staff members had recently tested positive for COVID-19. Two staff members working in the northern part of the school district had tested positive and one staff member at Saratoga... Full story
As the count of active cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to rise in Carbon County and across Wyoming, Carbon County School District No. 2 (CCSD2) recently announced three active cases among staff members. CCSD2 Superintendent Jim Copeland made the announcement on Sunday morning through the CCSD2 website. In the announcement, Copeland stated that the results of two positive results came due to ongoing random testing performed by the school district on all of its employees.... Full story
Last week, Carbon County Public Health (CCPH) raised eyebrows as they appeared to change their approach in how they respond to cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Throughout the pandemic, CCPH and the Carbon County COVID-19 Incident Management Team have been vague when reporting confirmed cases of the virus. On Tuesday, however, two specific businesses in Rawlins were mentioned as possible points of community exposure. An email sent to media outlets on September 8, and posted on social... Full story
Carbon County School District No. 2 (CCSD2) Superintendent Jim Copeland announced Friday morning that a staff member had tested positive for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). The staff member, who Copeland said had not had any direct contact with students, has been at home since the onset of symptoms. The announcement came via the school districts eNotes program, which sends out updates through email and SMS messages to those signed up for the service. "The staff member will follow the Carbon... Full story
In the past two weeks, Carbon County has seen a continued increase of confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) as tourists pour into the state and parents prepare to resume school. According to local health officials, the number of confirmed cases since the pandemic began has reached 61 with 26 of those having recovered. There are currently 35 active cases of COVID-19 within Carbon County. In addition to the 61 total confirmed cases, there have also been six non-local COVID cases. Of... Full story
Carbon County is seeing the highest spike in cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) since the pandemic began and a little over two weeks since the July 4 weekend. According to Carbon County Public Health, 11 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in the last six days. Jacquelin Wells, public information officer for the Carbon County COVID-19 Incident Management Team, confirmed to the Saratoga Sun that there had been previous cases either in the Valley or connected to the Valley. Additionally,... Full story
Prior to the July 4 weekend, two confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) were added to Carbon County bringing the total number to 15. The two additional cases come as Wyoming continues to see increases in confirmed cases across the state. On July 2, Carbon County Public Health Nurse Manager Amanda Brown issued an announcement that local officials were notified of the 14th case by Memorial Hospital of Carbon County. According to Brown, an adult male under the age of 30 had tested... Full story
While Carbon County is still relatively low in its total numbers of cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), four new cases have been added to the count within the past week. Additionally, it was announced by the Carbon County COVID-19 Incident Management Team that one of the out-of-county cases had passed away. On June 10, Jacquelin Wells, public information officer for the incident management team, announced the 10th confirmed case of COVID-19 in a male over the age of 50. Additionally, two... Full story
*UPDATE* On Tuesday evening, an 8th positive case of novel coronavirus was added to Carbon County's total count. The confirmed case is an adult male over the age of 30 who tested positive in Laramie County. Laramie County Public Health notified local health officials of the confirmed case. According to Jacquelin Wells, public information officer for the Carbon County COVID-19 Incident Management Team, the individual was in Carbon County recently, showed no symptoms and is being considered a... Full story
The process of easing restrictions for closures due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) began on May 1 as exceptions to two of Governor Mark Gordon's orders allowed for the reopening of businesses that have been impacted by those orders. All three orders have been extended until May 15. Under the first order, which was originally issued on March 20, gyms are allowed to open in a limited capacity. Additionally, restaurants may allow up to five customers at a time to enter to either pick up their... Full story
On May 8, it was announced that Carbon County had been granted exceptions to two public health orders issued by Governor Mark Gordon and State Health Officer Alexia Harrist. The exceptions pertain to the 1st public health order, which effectively closed restaurants and bars in the area on March 20, and the 2nd public health order, which forbade gatherings of 10 or more people. The full text of these variances can be found on the Carbon County website at http://carbonwy.com/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=1... Full story
Editor’s Note: Just before going to press, Wyoming added four confirmed deaths to the state’s official count. Please visit www.saratogasun.com for more information. Just two days after Wyoming confirmed it’s first death related to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), the state confirmed its second death. On Monday, April 13, the Wyoming Department of Health had announced that an older Johnson County man who had serious health conditions had died. On Wednesday, April 15, the Wyoming Depar... Full story
*UPDATE* Governor Mark Gordon has provided a statement on the death of four Fremont County residents who were members of the Northern Arapaho tribe. "I want to extend my condolences to the Northern Arapaho Tribe and to the families of the four people that passed away last night due to COVID-19. These deaths highlight the insidious nature of the illness, as both the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone Tribes took advanced protective measures early on, including through an aggressive testing strategy. I want to commend each of the sovereign... Full story
Governor Mark Gordon has unveiled a plan to transition Wyoming to a new phase of COVID-19 response. The plan creates a pathway to ease restrictions, recover businesses, and resume some activities. The phased approach will be driven by health-related data and provides counties flexibility to seek variances based on local conditions. “This will be a balanced approach that will be driven by two guiding principles– public safety and helping more people get back to work,” Governor Gordon said. “We are going to relax some of the restric... Full story
The first death related to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in Wyoming was confirmed on Monday by the Wyoming Department of Health. The death comes nearly a month after Governor Mark Gordon issued his first public health order closing public spaces and a month since Wyoming had its first confirmed case of COVID-19. According to the press release from the Wyoming Department of Health, the first confirmed COVID-19 death is a Johnson County man who had been hospitalized and previously confirmed to... Full story
The Wyoming Department of Health (WDH) is announcing the death of a hospitalized Laramie County man previously identified as a laboratory-confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) case. The older man represents Wyoming’s second reported death associated with COVID-19. There have been 287 confirmed and 105 probable cases reported so far from across Wyoming. “Unfortunately, we have seen this disease touch another Wyoming family in the worst way,” said Dr. Alexia Harrist, state health officer and state epidemiologist with WDH. “While anyone... Full story