News

This news in  from  Community Health Services of Faribault and Martin  County .As of Friday  we have six new laboratory confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 in Martin County. Case 13 is 66 year old, not currently hospitalized wit...h recent travel. Case 14 is an 85 year old, hospitalized with no recent travel. Case 15 is a 71 year old with no travel and not currently hospitalized. Case 16 is 72 year old with recent travel and not currently hospitalized. Case 17 is 72 year old with no recent travel and not currently hospitalized. Case 18 is a 47 year old with [...]

Sheriff Jeff Markquart posted a video update Thursday concerning COVID-19 for the citizens of Martin County. Yesterday, we had 10 [cases] and today we are up two, so we are at 12 total positive tests in Martin County,” he said. He went on to share that people who have tested positive are either in the process, or will be soon, of being released from quarantine. He noted those people are fully allowed to be out in the public. “We need to support those people coming out,” he said. “They’ve been through quite a rough situation Markquart also answered some questions received [...]

Martin County Commissioners met via conference call in an emergency meeting Thursday morning, to discuss county operations in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The board heard an update from County Emergency Management director Abigail Nesbit. “As far as the the stay-at-home order from the governor, it’s a non-enforceable order, so if people go out to get groceries, pick up medications or go to the doctor, there’s nothing we can do with law enforcement to pull them over, ticket them or anything along those lines,” she said. “This order is in place so that people take this virus seriously. They need [...]

In response to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz issuing a stay-at-home order for Minnesotans on Wednesday, Martin County Sheriff Jeff Markquart issued a video update for the county on the sheriff’s Facebook page. Markquart noted that the county has 10 positive COVID-19 cases, and that nine of those 10 are due to community spread. He strongly urged people to limit all non-essential travel. “What we’re asking for in this stay-at-home order is that we do that: stay at home,” he said. “We’re not asking you not to go out and buy groceries, go to the doctor or essential things. Those things we [...]

The Fairmont Area School Board Tuesday conducted its first online meeting. Fairmont Elementary Principals Andy Traetow and Michelle Rosen detailed their efforts working with staff on implementing distance learning. “We’ve really encouraged our teachers, with the rapid pace that information has been changing and is distributed, to really suppress the need to plan for too far out,” Traetow said. “We’ve been taking it hour by hour and day by day in our planning in preparation in the anticipated application of our distance learning plan.” “Our staff has been phenomenal,” Rosen said. “We’re really working now on that platform to get it [...]

Dear Martin County Residents, We need your help in suppressing the coronavirus. There is no longer any debate: All medical experts agree that the spread of COVID-19 has the potential to overwhelm the U.S. health care system by early summer. The number of positive COVID-19 cases in Martin County continue to rise at a concerning rate. As of today, March 23, there are 8 confirmed cases with many other patients awaiting results. Despite having a significantly lower population than both Blue Earth and Nicollet counties, Martin County has the same number of cases as both counties combined (Blue Earth: 5 cases; [...]

The Fairmont City Council adopted a new procedure Monday due to the COVID-19 pandemic.Mayor Debbie Foster led the meeting in council chambers, joined only by Paul Hoye, city finance director. Phone lines connected city council members, city staff and the city attorney to the meeting. On the recommendation of Robert Scott, an attorney with Flaherty & Hood, the city’s interim civil counsel, the council voted unanimously to declare a local emergency that will remain in effect until the council rescinds it. The resolution directs city staff to review regulatory requirements and practices to determine if they should be adjusted with regard [...]

In light of deferring elective care appointments, Mayo Clinic Health System will temporarily suspend operations at four regional part-time clinics in Trimont, Truman, Sherburn and Armstrong, Iowa, effective March 23, 2020. Each clinic is normally operated two days per week or less. The suspensions are necessary to reallocate staffing resources to other critical care needs in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, as well as ensure the safety of our patients and staff. “We are temporarily suspending operations at these clinics to redirect important resources to where they are needed most,” says Marie Morris, M.D., Mayo Clinic Health System in Fairmont medical director. “During this interim period, our patients [...]

Mayo Clinic Health System implements a no-visitors policy for hospital patients in response to COVID-19   To protect the safety of Mayo Clinic Health System patients and staff, hospitalized patients at all Mayo Clinic Health System sites will no longer be allowed to have visitors. Compassionate exceptions will be granted on a case-by-case basis, including births and end-of-life care, among other specific circumstances. All visitors granted exceptions will be screened prior to entry. No visitors under the age of 18 will be allowed. These visitor restrictions will remain in place until further notice. We encourage family members to consider other ways [...]

Information on all 8 positive cases in Martin County including ages, where they are recovering, and how they caught the virus. Case 1- 50s in the hospital reco...vering-community spread Case 2- 60s in the hospital recovering-travel related Case 3- 59 recovering at home- community spread Case 4- 74 recovering at home- community spread Case 5- 88 in the hospital Case 6- 38 recovering at home- community spread Case 7- 26 recovering at home- community spread Case 8- 68 recovering at home- community spread