COVID-19 vaccine timeline
According to Leslie Campbell, Pottawatomie County Health Department officer, a COVID-19 vaccine will be available locally by January 2021.
“There will be limited doses available,” Campbell said. “They’ll be sending out priority groups and we’ll have those priority groups listed, but they are saying that there will be widespread vaccine available and it’ll be a two-dose series.”
She says that when COVID-19 vaccines do become available, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention likely will not make a recommendation for which one people should receive.
“That’s just the way the CDC does it,” Campbell said. “They’ll just recommend that getting a vaccine is the best thing you can do to help protect yourself. They won’t pick one company over another.”
She also says the types of COVID-19 vaccines available will differ based on how they increase the recipient’s immunity to COVID-19, which age group they can be given to and how they are delivered.
KDOT grant for Belvue Bridge project
The Pottawatomie and Wabaunsee County Commissions will pursue a $900,000 cost-share grant from the Kansas Department of Transportation to help pay for repairs to the Belvue Bridge.
Project costs will likely range from $7.5-11.4 million, depending on which of the two options currently on the table the commissioners decide to go with.
Peter Clark, Pottawatomie County Public Works director, says KDOT officials have told him a grant application involving the Belvue Bridge would be competitive.
“Our match, obviously, would be much greater than 50 percent,” Clark said. “Our match would be over 80 or 90 percent, depending on the option. That commitment from the local entity would be highly respected.”
The commissions will not meet again for at least three weeks to discuss which repair option to pursue.
Clark says the Belvue Bridge will likely need to be closed down if a decision is not made by January.
“My anticipation is that before next winter hits, the bridge will be in bad enough condition with putting asphalt patch on this winter, that we will have to do something; close it or start construction,” Clark said.
According to Clark, construction on the Belvue Bridge will take 10 to 12 months.
Three-month temperature and precipitation-level forecast
Jared Barnes, Pottawatomie County fire supervisor, gave county commissioners an update Monday on what the local climate could look like over the next three months.
“Temperature wise, it looks like we’re going to be warmer than normal,” Barnes said.
Barnes says the region is projected to have an normal amount of precipitation, but it could still be on the drier side.
“We still have the potential for things drying out and this could be a preclude to next spring being a pretty active fire season,” Barnes said.
To view three-month projections for temperature and precipitation levels in Kansas and other states, visit the Climate Predication Center on the National Weather Service website.
