(VALLEJO, Calif.) The Vallejo Police Department is currently investigating a threatening email that was allegedly sent to a reporter by the police union, KTVU2 reports.
In response to the allegation, Police Chief Shawny Williams issued a statement saying, “We do not condone any form of disrespect, discourteous behavior or act of intimidation toward our media partners.”
The email was sent Otis Taylor Jr., a columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle by the Vallejo Police Officers’ Association saying, “2021 will be a little bit better not having your biased and un-informed articles printed in the newspaper.”
The email also stated, “We will warn our Georgia colleagues of your impending arrival.”
Taylor is stepping down from the Chronicle and moving to Georgia. Taylor had reported on the Vallejo PD while working for the Chronicle.
Solano County COVID numbers show need for shutdown now…
By Roger Straw, December 8, 2020
We’re all tired of it. It’s been a looong 9 months for us all. And everyone understands the terrible plight of our business owners and employees. They are tired, too – tired of the ever changing regulations and fearful of some of the seemingly overreaching measures in the Governor’s stay-at-home order. But the virus is spreading like wildfire across the country and here in Solano County. Experts say we need to take extreme measures NOW to avoid an almost inconceivable spread of disease and death and to head off even greater economic losses in the Spring and Summer.
So – please – take extra precautions, NOW. Stay home as much as you can, and make plans now for a different kind of Christmas, Hanukah and New Year celebration. Wear a mask if you must go out, order groceries for pick-up or delivery, don’t stay long anywhere but home, and keep your distance more carefully than ever before.
Tuesday, December 8: 203 (!) new cases overnight, 5 new deaths. Since Feb: 11,950 cases, more than 600 hospitalized, 90 deaths.Compare previous report, Monday, Dec. 7:Summary
Solano County reported 203 (!) new cases overnight. As of today, Solano has seen an average of 140 new cases per dayover the last 14 days! (source: covid19.ca.gov) Total of 11,950 cases since the outbreak started.
Deaths – 5 new deaths reported today, all over 65 years of age, total of 90 Solano deaths since the pandemic began.
Active cases – Solano reported 83 more active cases today. New total of 1,163 active cases. Active cases have increased alarmingly lately – COMPARE: average number of Active Cases during October was 284 – today we are at 1,163! Is the County equipped to contact trace so many infected persons? Who knows? To my knowledge, Solano has offered no reports on contact tracing.
Hospitalizations –(For best info, see BenIndy page, COVID-19 Hospitalizations Daily Update for Solano County.) CAUTION ON COUNTY REPORTING: According to Solano Health Officer Dr. Bela Matyas, the County occasionally updates Age Group hospitalizations retroactively, adding substantial numbers. Thus, many hospitalizations are never reported as CURRENTLY hospitalized. Today, Solano County reported the number of CURRENTLY hospitalized persons increased by 6, total of 74, but TOTAL hospitalized since the outbreak began supposedly remained unchanged today, a total of 603 of all ages hospitalized since the outbreak began. The County will likely update this figure at a later date. [For my manual calculation of total hospitalizations, see age group stats below.]
Testing – The County reports today that 5,720 residents were tested overnight, far and away the most ever tested in Solano on a single day. A total of 140,772 unduplicated residents have now been tested for COVID-19 since the outbreak began. 31.4% of Solano County’s 447,643 residents (2019) have been tested.
Positive Test Rate – Extremely high at 12.9%
Solano County reported another high 7-day average positive test rate today of 12.9%, up from yesterday’s 12.8%, far and away over the State’s purple tier threshold of 8%. Average percent positive test rates are among the best metrics for measuring community spread of the virus. The much lower and more stableCalifornia 7-day average test rate has also been on the rise lately, and down slightly today from yesterday’s 10.5% to 10.1%. (Note that Solano County displays past weeks and months in a 7-day test positivity line graph which also shows daily results. However, the chart does not display an accurate number of cases for the most recent days, as there is a lag time in receiving test results. The 7-day curve therefore also lags behind due to unknown recent test results.)
By Age Group
Youth 17 and under – 21 (!) new cases today, total of 1,349 cases, representing 11.3% of the 11,950 total cases. No new hospitalizations reported today among this age group. Thankfully, no deaths have ever been reported in Solano County in this age group. But cases among Solano youth rose steadily over the summer, from 5.6% of total cases on June 8 to 11% on August 31 and has plateaued at over 11% since September 30. Youth are 22% of Solano’s general population, so this 11.x% may seem low. The significance is this: youth are SERIOUSLY NOT IMMUNE (!) – in fact at least 14 of our youth have been hospitalized since the outbreak began.
Persons 18-49 years of age – 123 (!) new cases today, total of 7,014 cases. This age group is 41% of the population in Solano, but represents just under 60% of the total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups. The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today. A total of 194 have been hospitalized since the outbreak began. No new deaths in this young group today, total of 6 deaths. Some in this group are surely at high risk, as many are providing essential services among us, and some may be ignoring public health orders. I expect this group is a major factor in the spread of the virus.
Persons 50-64 years of age – 34 new cases today, total of 2,333 cases. This age group represents nearly 20% of the 11,950 total cases. The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today. A total of 162 have been hospitalized since the outbreak began. No new deaths in this age group today, a total of 16 deaths.
Persons 65 years or older – 24 new cases today, total of 1,246, representing 10.4% of Solano’s 11,950 total cases. The County reported no new hospitalizations among persons in this age group today. A total of 233 have been hospitalized since the outbreak began. 5 new deaths were reported in this age group today, total of 68 of our elders who died of COVID, accounting for 76%of Solano’s 90 total deaths.
City Data
Benicia added 4 new cases today, total of 316 cases since the outbreak began.
Dixon added 22 new cases today, total of 862 cases.
Fairfield added 47 new cases today, total of 3,549 cases.
Rio Vista added 3 new cases today, total of 100 cases.
Suisun City added 11 new cases today, total of 829 cases.
Vacaville added 43 new cases today, total of 2,504 cases.
Vallejoadded 72 new cases today, total of 3,748 cases.
Unincorporated areasadded 1 new case today, total of 42 cases.
Race / Ethnicity
The County report on race / ethnicity includes case numbers, hospitalizations, deaths and Solano population statistics. This information is discouragingly similar to national reports that indicate significantly worse outcomes among black and brown Americans. Note that all of this data surely undercounts Latinx Americans, as there is a large group of “Multirace / Others” which likely is composed mostly of Latinx members of our communities.
Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 10% of cases, 12% of hospitalizations, and 17% of deaths.
Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 12% of cases, but 16% of hospitalizations, and 22% of deaths.
Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 22% of cases, 26% of hospitalizations, and 17% of deaths.
White Americans are 39% of the population in Solano County, but only account for 26% of cases, 28% of hospitalizations and 34% of deaths.
Solano County posts a daily COVID-19 update every weekday. The update is supposed to appear online by 4pm. Rarely does it appear later than 6pm.
I spend an hour every evening as soon as the County’s report appears, posting my summary and analysis. As of 7pm today, there is no update on the Solano COVID-19 dashboard. The latest report is dated December 7 at 4pm.
For my regular readers – I have other business to attend to, so this notice is all you’ll get tonight. Sorry, please check back in the morning.
Conflicting sources on Solano County’s ICU bed capacity – Solano Public Health presents a rosier picture
The State of California has readily available statistics on ICU bed capacity. COVID.CA.GOV posts the actual number of ICU beds available by State, Region and County. Solano County had 11 ICU beds available on December 6.
The State of California also posts the percentage of ICU beds available by State, Region and County. Solano County had 17.7% of its ICU beds available on December 6.
Solano County Public Health Department does not post actual numbers of ICU beds, but does offer a weekday update showing the percentage of ICU beds available. According to Public Health, Solano County had 33% of its ICU beds available on December 5.
Now comes the fun part. Or maybe not so fun. Note that the State’s percentages do not agree with Solano County’s percentages. Solano County Public Health Department consistently shows a higher percentage of ICU beds available. I’m posting below two screenshots, first from today’s California page, then from the Solano County page.
My understanding is that hospitals report directly to the State. I’m not sure where Solano Public Health gets its information, and why it consistently portrays a rosier picture. Someone should look into this.
From COVID.CA.GOV on 12/8/20 – Beds available: 17.7%
From Solano County’s COVID-19 Updates and Resources on 12/8/20 – Beds available: 33%
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