Cavendish Update 7/17/20: 131 construction/News/Events
/
Even with no live sports in the pandemic, the Hellmans maintained a commitment to fries. Jane Harte
CHECK THE CAVENDISH VT FACEBOOK PAGE DAILY FOR THE LATEST NEWS You don’t have to be a Facebook subscriber to see this page.
7/17/20
1. Cavendish Info
2. Construction Report on 131
3. Latest Spigot Turn: Covid-19 Update
4. Events
1. CAVENDISH INFO
• Town Wide Tag Sale: If you would like a Facebook album for items you plan to sell at the Town Wide Tag Sale, please e-mail photographs to cavendishconnects@gmail.com. All vendors and shoppers are required to wear masks, social distance of six feet or more, make frequent use of hand sanitizer stations and stay home if sick. Please observe the rules and help keep Cavendish safe. For more information, check out the Tag Sale webpage. This will be updated as new vendors are added.
• July 29 Concert: The Gully Boys concert, cancelled on July 8 due to weather, has been rescheduled for July 29. Please observe social distancing and mask requirements.
• Summer Camp-Camp Go Wild- Closes Temporarily: The outdoor summer camp run by the After School program of the Green Mountain and Ludlow Mount Holly school districts-Camp Go Wild- has closed for the rest of this week after a parent reported that a child was running a temperature. Chester Telegraph
• A Complex Equation: Schools, Tech Center Prepare for Return of Students: Administrators work to minimize in-person risk but prep remote learning if needed. Chester Telegraph
• Scott Signs Police Reform Bill Banning Chokeholds and Mandating Body Camera
• American Pickers to film in New England
2. CONSTRUCTION REPORT ON 131: The following report was provided by VTrans on July 16 and includes information about 131 closing for a culvert replacement by Glimmerstone. The closure period will begin at 12:01 AM on Tuesday August 18th and reopen at midnight on Friday August 21st
Remote Public Information Meeting: Tuesday, July 28, 2020 6:00 PM This meeting will be conducted using Zoom. The meeting link is https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89986953266#success. The meeting will be open at approximately 5:50 PM on 7/28, and will begin at 6:00 PM. The closure period will begin at 12:01 AM on Tuesday August 18th and reopen at midnight on Friday August 21st
The purpose of this meeting is to present the public with information on a culvert replacement and associated full road closure on Vermont Route 131 in Cavendish, VT. The purpose of this project is to remove and replace the existing laid up stone culvert with a concrete reinforced box culvert.
Discussion of the scope of work necessitating the closure will be addressed. This meeting will provide information on the construction schedule, detour route, and sources of information during construction. VTrans staff and the contractor will be present to address any questions or concerns in regard to the work being performed for this project.
Construction Activities, Week of 7/20: It is anticipated that soil nail installation will continue until mid-August. This work will be completed behind the barriers located within the signalized portion of the project between Lindberg Drive and Brook Road.
Cross pipe work has resumed and completed crossings will be left as a gravel surface for several weeks until paving is scheduled. This work will continue for several weeks. The traveling public is urged to use caution when traveling on gravel surfaces.
The contractor has also begun to install catch basins (storm drains) and crews are currently working on the west side of the project and progressing to the east. The majority of the basins will be brand new (not replacements) and are located in ditch lines and will get attached to the cross pipes that crews are replacing.
The traveling public should expect one-way alternating traffic in the location of this operation. Minor delays may occur.
Temporary Traffic Signal: Please note that the phasing of the temporary signal is approximately 5 minutes. The signal is functioning properly and motorists are urged to not proceed until the light turns green. The need for the signal at this location of the construction zone is due to the narrowing of the lane in order that construction activities can be performed safely. "Jumping" the red light may result in meeting oncoming traffic from the other direction. There is no room to maneuver cars side by side in order to alleviate this situation, and this results in traffic delays and potential hazards. Please observe the timing of the signal.
Tree Flagging: The contractor has flagged some trees in Cavendish and Proctorsville with pink ribbon. These trees have been marked as having low-hanging branches over/near the roadway and are being looked at to determine if they need to be trimmed. The contractor (Pike Industries) has marked these trees now in order to allow time for landowners to ask questions. The intent is not to cut the trees down, but to possibly trim off some low limbs. Please contact Natalie Boyle if you have any questions or concerns or would like to speak with someone in regard to any flagged trees.
Traffic Impacts : One-way alternating traffic patterns should be expected at various locations along the project during work hours (approximately 6:00 am to 6:00 pm). Minor delays may occur at these locations.
3. THE LATEST SPIGOT TURN: Covid Related Info: It’s been a very confusing week due to the evolving situation in Manchester. As Uncle Tony (Fauci) continues to say, follow the data and science and avoid the politics. Yet, science can pose its own set of challenges, as even the experts disagree. Right now we’re seeing this play out with the Manchester outbreak.
Included in Tuesday’s special post was information about the use of the Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) by the Manchester Medical Center (MMC). RAT provides test results within 15 minutes, while the PCR (polymer chain reaction) test can take days for results. While both tests are considered to have good accuracy for those that test positive, the differences lies in the “false negatives”-those people who test negative but are in fact positive. There is an error rate of approximately 12% for the RAT and 6% of the PCR. This means, depending on the test used, 12% or 6% of the time those that test negative are actually positive.
VT Department of Health (VDH) considers anyone who tests positive for a RAT a presumptive case and needs to be given a PCR test to confirm findings. Unfortunately, if there is a time delay of even a few days, the PCR can show a negative when in fact the person was truly positive when tested using RAT.
The physicians at MMC had a number of patients coming in for testing this past weekend as they either had symptoms and/or were around someone who tested positive. Between July 10 to July 14, MMC had 58 people test positive on the RAT and suspected 30 more as actually being positive but they tested negative.
Now that considerable PCR testing is being done, some of those initial RAT positive tests will be negative on the PCR due to time delay. Will they follow up with antibody tests for these individuals?
Yesterday, the state had a private press conference. Regardless of limited results, contact tracing and other public safety measures are being administered for those who initially tested positive. Dr. Mark Levine is urging Vermonters to take the potential outbreak seriously. "This is not a false alarm," he said. "There are going to be cases in this geographic part of the state. We want people to take seriously the advice we've given them on their prior test result."
You can read more on this at Manchester Health Clinics Reports 59 Covid Cases in a Growing Outbreak (VT Digger) Virus hits home: Positive tests nears 60; caution advised (Manchester Journal).
The important take home message from this situation is that the virus is in VT, whether VDH includes the numbers or not in their daily counts. Remember test results are counted in the state of legal residence, not where you are staying, tested or being cared for. With the Okemo Valley having a large 2nd home owner and tourist community, we know the virus has been here and most likely is around. Therefore it’s imperative that we all do what we can to protect ourselves and each other.
There has been a lot of discussion on the Cavendish VT Facebook page. So a few facts:
• Most people in our area have not been infected
• We don’t know the long term health impacts of having had Covid as it will be decades before that is known. Whether it was a mild, severe or asymptomatic case, you only get shingles if you had chicken pox. Children who had the 1918 flu ended up with more illness and complications as they aged versus their counterparts who didn’t have it. Interestingly, it appears that flu survivors had less risk of cancer and were more likely to die from heart and other types of diseases.
• Masking and social distancing reduce risk of infection and virus spread.
Call your health care provider if you have any of these symptoms: Cough, fever, shortness of breath, chills, fatigue, muscle pain or body aches, headache, sore throat, loss of taste or smell, congestion or runny nose, nausea, vomiting or diarrhea. If someone is showing any of these signs, seek emergency medical care immediately: Trouble breathing; Persistent pain or pressure in the chest; New confusion; Inability to wake or stay awake; Bluish lips or face
Outbreaks/Numbers: As of July 16, VT has 1,325 cases, 5 people are in a VT Hospital and 79,040 have been tested.
• Masks Required: Walmart (starts on Monday); Shaw’s (starts July 21) Target (starts Aug. 1), CVS, Walgreens, Safeway, Starbucks, Best Buy, Kohl's. have also announced mandatory masks
• Closed: Dorset Quarry, much of Manchester is closed so call ahead if you are heading in that direction.
• Reopening: Cavendish Library, Depot Street Bridge (next week-no specific date), VT Technical College (mix of in-person, online), Castleton University (dorms open, online classes only)
• Cancelled: Cavendish Rec’s Monday night baseball and softball; Springfield Apple Festival & Craft Show
• State Issues Guidelines for Reopening Schools
3. UPCOMING EVENTS:
JULY 20 (MONDAY): Blood Drive: American Legion, Monday July 20 12-5. To register or FMI: 800-733-2767 or www.redcrossblood.org
JULY 22 (WEDNESDAY): Deb Brisson and the Hay Burners on the Svec Memorial Green in Proctorsville, Wednesday, July 22nd at 6:00 pm. Covid protocols required. Concerts are free and open to the public.
JULY 23 (THURSDAY): Compost Workshop, 6:30 at CTES auditorium. Masking and social distancing required. Plastic composters for sale at this event.
JULY 25 (SATURDAY): TOWN WIDE TAG SALE 9-2
JULY 29 (WEDNESDAY): Gully Boys, 6 pm Svec Park. Social distancing and masks required. Free and open to the public
AUGUST 10 (MONDAY): Absentee voter ballots due
AUGUST 11 (TUESDAY): VOTE! Primary Election
CA❤︎ENDSH-A SAFER SIX COMMUNITY
Covers mouth & nose
Always masks in public
Vermonters keep each other safe
Elbow coughs
Never forgets to wash hands
Disinfects common surfaces
Is alert for symptoms
Stays 6 feet apart
Has respect for personal space