Deanna Hagberg, Dakota County Emergency Management director, said the directed health measure order was set to expire on Tuesday, so a new one had to be issued. She noted that "nothing has changed" from the previous order.
Gatherings are still restricted to 50 percent for an indoor facility's occupancy or 75 percent for an outdoor facility. No gatherings may exceed 10,000 individuals. Parades, carnivals, midways, dances (except dance recitals), street dances and beer gardens are prohibited. Drive-in movie theaters may open at full capacity as long as parties remain in their vehicles while viewing the movie and a distance of six feet can be maintained in lines for concessions and restrooms.
Restaurants, bars, taverns and clubs must continue to limit parties to no more than eight individuals. Parties must be seated at tables unless ordering, using restrooms or participating in games. Self-service buffets and food bars are prohibited.
According to a statement issued Aug. 26 by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, all counties in Phase 3 will move to Phase 4 on Sept. 14 unless hospitalizations dramatically change. Those 66 counties will continue in Phase 4 through Oct. 31.
Phase 4 moves restrictions on restaurants, bars, churches, child care centers and other businesses to guidance and allows outdoor venues to operate at full capacity. Arenas and event centers may operate at 75 percent capacity, though organizers of events of 500 or more people must still receive local health department approval prior to reopening, the statement said.
Dakota County reported 11 new cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, bringing the county's total number of cases to 1,995. A total of 42 Dakota County residents have succumbed to the virus.
The Northeast Nebraska Public Health Department reported four new cases of COVID-19 in the health district Tuesday. The district, which consists of Thurston, Wayne, Dixon and Cedar counties, has had 424 total cases. Of those who have been infected with the virus, 318 have recovered and six have died.
As of Monday, information posted to Wayne State College's website showed 10 total COVID-19 cases. Of those cases, eight are recovered and two are active. Three of the individuals went into quarantine/isolation at home prior to the start of classes on Aug. 17, according to the information.
The Hinton Community School District is changing to a hybrid learning plan as the COVID-19 positivity rate remains high in Plymouth County.
Beginning Wednesday, Hinton students in grades 4-12 will move to the hybrid plan. Students on the Monday/Wednesday list will come to school on Monday and Wednesday and participate online the other three days.
Students on the Tuesday/Thursday list come to school on Tuesday and Thursday and participate online the other three days.
"Our PK-3 students will remain on-site. The ability to cohort by grade, close down common areas, and 100% compliance with mask wearing as students enter, exit, and move through the halls make it possible to remain on site and limit exposure," according to a letter from Hinton's administrative team, which was dated Aug. 31 and addressed to families in the district.
MMCRU also announced a hybrid schedule for learning, which will begin Thursday and extend through Sept. 22.
A high number of students at the RU center have been forced to quarantine due to COVID-19 exposure and a high number of staff members at the MMC center have become symptomatic and are awaiting test results, Superintendent Dan Barkel said in a letter to the MMCRU community.
"A hybrid schedule means that we will have half of our students in our buildings while the other half will be learning at home remotely," Barkel wrote.
On Tuesday, Plymouth County's percentage of positive COVID-19 tests during the past two weeks dipped slightly to 22.4 percent, which ranked third among Iowa counties. The Plymouth County led the state on Monday with a rate of 23.8 percent.
Iowa Department of Public Health data, which was last updated Tuesday, shows that a total of 500 hospital beds are available in Regional Medical Coordination Center Region 3, which includes Woodbury County and most of Northwest Iowa. Nearly all of the patients currently hospitalized with COVID-19 are being cared for in Sioux City hospitals.
RMCC 3 has 38 COVID-19 patients in ICU beds and there are still 85 beds available. The state statistics show two ventilators being used by patients and an additional 99 ventilators are available in the region.
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