Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
By RICHARD JENKINS
MADISON, Wis. -— Gov. Tony Evers is seeking a major disaster declaration for Wisconsin as the state continues to work to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
Evers sent a letter to the Federal Emergency Management Agency seeking the federal declaration Tuesday for the COVID-19, or coronavirus, pandemic.
“The response to this virus has required a tremendous response from the state and all of its communities that far exceeds the resources currently available to us,” Evers said in a statement. “By seeking this declaration, we are hopeful the state will be able to access critical programs that are needed to deal with the pandemic now, and with the recovery that will be taking place down the road.”
The disaster declaration would give the state access to a variety of federal programs, including those that provide statewide hazard mitigation, public and direct assistance, crisis counseling, community disaster loans and disaster supplemental nutrition programs.
“The response to this outbreak has caused multiple deaths, exhausted many of our resources, resulted in record unemployment claims, and taken a toll on the community infrastructure that is in place to protect the public,” Evers said. “We need federal assistance to help rebuild those critical safety nets and ensure they remain strong.”
Evers declared a public health emergency on March 12 in response to the pandemic, ordering the activation of the State Emergency Operations Center on March 14.
As of Tuesday, Wisconsin has had 1,351 confirmed cases and 16 deaths related to the pandemic, according to information on the Wisconsin Department of Health Services’ website, including one fatal case in Iron County.
Michigan
President Donald Trump issued a similar major disaster declaration for the state of Michigan Saturday for the pandemic there.
As of Tuesday, Michigan had 7,615 cases and 259 deaths, according to information on the state website, including two cases and one death in Gogebic County.
Lac Vieux Desert
The tribal council for the Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians issued a stay-at-home resolution that took effect Wednesday. Similar to the state of Michigan’s order, the resolution requires those living on the reservation to stay at their place of residence unless they are working at a job deemed essential or traveling for a purpose allowed under the order — such as outdoor activities while remaining six feet away from others, obtaining medical or other necessary services, banking or caring for those in need.
Along with the resolution, the council extended the closure of the Northern Waters Casino Resort through April 30.
