Kootenai County, ID: Following the afternoon briefing of the Kootenai County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Unified Command, today’s report shows three new cases of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in the Panhandle Health District. This bring our total to 48, with 44 in Kootenai County and four in Bonner County.
Additionally, 24 of the above mentioned cases are no longer being monitored. This is defined by the Panhandle Health District as a person who has stayed home for the recommended period of time and have not had a fever for at least 72 hours. Details on any new cases are posted and updated in real time on www.panhandlehealthdistrict.org/covid-19/.
Unfortunately, there is a lot of misinformation out there on social media. So for the most accurate and up-to-date information on COVID-19 please continue to follow the Kootenai County Office of Emergency Management’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/kootenaioem/.
Finally, here is a message from our Unified Commanders at the EOC. Easter is a time of celebration for the Christian Community. Normally, those celebrations include church services and dinner with friends and family. Unfortunately, this year we must all take a different approach to how those celebrations will occur. As of today, we have seen three new cases of COVID-19 virus in the panhandle. Additionally, there were 121 new confirmed cases in Idaho yesterday. These new cases are the third single highest day increase since this crisis began. As the Governor ponders what he will do with the Stay-at-Home order next week, we must continue to maintain our social distancing. We can and will beat this, but we certainly don’t want to relax too soon and relapse into more positive cases. Happy Easter.
Unified Commanders,
Sheriff Ben Wolfinger
Chief Chris Way
Kootenai County Emergency Operations Center