Paulette Anderson of Hammond, Wis., a member of the St. Croix County Board of Supervisors, mentioned that tensions over the pandemic response have been mounting within the county, particularly in latest months. This week, the board thought-about an ordinance that will have tightened restrictions on companies and made masks necessary in indoor public locations. It was rejected, 9 votes to 10.
“It’s actually turn out to be divisive,” Ms. Anderson mentioned. “I imagine in masks sporting and social distancing. I imagine that you simply shouldn’t go right into a enterprise with out masks. However a lot of individuals don’t really feel that means, and people of us don’t wish to be informed what to do.”
A Surge at Residence
As extra individuals in St. Croix County grew to become sick from the coronavirus this fall, Ms. Schachtner was battling the calls for on her workers. The 5 demise investigators now work 12-hour shifts 4 days every week and spend 36 hours every week on backup. One workers member needed to quarantine due to a partner who was sick with the coronavirus.
Her personal State Senate re-election bid was developing in November, however Ms. Schachtner didn’t maintain marketing campaign occasions or knock on doorways, nervous that it was not a secure observe; her Republican opponent gained simply.
Final week, Ms. Schachtner despatched a memo to native funeral houses, a few of which have been at capability, telling them they might use the refrigerated truck for his or her useless. The variety of infections and virus deaths within the county was quickly turning bleak.
“It was like a snowball,” she mentioned. “Simply rapidly the truth of what everybody mentioned was going to occur was occurring. And I really feel prefer it was virtually like individuals have been like, ‘I by no means thought this was going to occur and that is truly occurring.’”
Then the virus reached her circle of relatives.
Ms. Schachtner’s sister-in-law, about to have surgical procedure, took a routine coronavirus check that got here again optimistic. Within the following weeks, extra household adopted: a brother-in-law, a sister and a niece, who was an aide within the nursing dwelling the place her father, Richard Rivard, lived.
Source link
