Local News for 4/02/24
County Public Health Report ~ 4/01/24
Public Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry and Director of Emergency Management Willie Bence spoke to commissioners and the public at the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) meeting Monday April 1st for the monthly Health Report, and answered questions from KPTZ listeners and the commissioners.
Dr. Berry said that three respiratory illnesses have dipped in number; RSV, Flu, and Covid-19 are all downtrending. She said in terms of Covid-19 that across the US, hospitalizations are down and locally there is far less of the virus in Port Townsend wastewater. Covid is still here however, so she recommends wearing a mask in the airport, while boarding and during descent while traveling by air.
Measles was mentioned and the reason there is any in the US is because fewer people are getting vaccinated, she said. Especially in children, it can cause severe disease and require quarantine of 21 days for kids to stay home from school, whether they have measles or haven’t been vaccinated should there be an outbreak at school. But right now there seems to be no measles here in Jefferson County or in the I-5 corridor of Puget Sound.
Willie Bence said there will be an event with helpful information about wildfire and smoke impacts especially for those in sensitive groups (children, the elderly, and anyone with asthma or other respiratory illnesses) on Wednesday, April 10 at Finnriver Cider Garden from 5:30 to 7pm.
April 1-15 KPTZ Programming Highlights
For a compendium of upcoming featured programs, check KPTZ Spotlight for April 1-15. Many of our program hosts provide specifics about what’s planned for this half month. If you’re not already a Spotlight subscriber, you’re invited to join our Mailing List. See KPTZ’s current Weekly On-Air Schedule and Daily Program Schedule.
County Connections
(Airdate: March 29, 2024) Taylor Clark welcomed co-host Greg Brotherton and we had a chance to talk with DIane McDade about plans for a Jefferson County Pool. Diane is the President of the JefCo Aquatic Coalition and we talked about the formation of a new task force being put together to investigate pool options and ideas.
Local News for 3/29/24
Brewocracy Now ~ 3/28/24
Co-Hosts City Manager John Mauro and KPTZ’s Chris Bricker (sitting in for Taylor Clark), welcome journalist, writer and artist Mitzi Jo Gordon to Brewocracy Now. We talk about Mitzi’s journalistic and artistic life in the St. Petersburg-Tampa Bay Area, her life as an artist amid the bustle of Brooklyn and its all too hectic city pace, and then her choice to settle in Port Townsend. Once introduced to our town by her sister, Mitzi immediately knew she had found an artistic home. Socially engaged art as a genre that’s experiential, collaborative, and participatory, has been a significant side to Mitzi’s creative practice. She talks about her brief stint as Managing Editor of the Leader, and the importance of making honest choices—and ultimately the acceptance of her new role as Director of the Port Townsend Creative District.
Local News for 3/28/14
Connectivity Fair, part 1
(Airdate: March 28, 2024) Connectivity Fair 2024 How it Began – Missy converses with the planning team for this powerful day-long event. Ben Bauermeister, Judith Alexander, and Rose Madrone discuss the inspiration for the Connectivity Fair, its purpose and the potential impact for community members to deepen connections, resources and resiliency as a community.
#664 The Nature of Anderson Lake
(Airdate: March 27, 2024) Nature Now host Jackie Canterbury talks with Bev McNeil about the nature of Anderson Lake State Park. The park encompasses 496 acres of land with a diversity of plant communities, wetlands, and forests. The name bears the family name of an earlier owner, Amanda Anderson. The land was purchased in 1947. The park now offers trails that pass along the lake and through grassy marches, patches of salmonberries and huckleberries and through forests of young and older western red cedar and Douglas-fir.
Local News for 3/27/24
