Will County

Will County Board seeks input on $133 Million Covid Relief Fund allocation

Published by admin on Mon, 08/09/2021 - 1:28pm

JOLIET – The Will County Board is seeking input from residents, business owners, and non-profits on how to spend $133 million in federal pandemic relief funds. The money was distributed as part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) passed by Congress earlier this year.

“We want to know what the people that live and work in Will County need in their communities due to the pandemic,” said Speaker of the Will County Board Mimi Cowan (Naperville). “This short survey will help the County Board direct funds to where they are most needed.”

Heavy rains make end of June a washout

Published by admin on Tue, 06/29/2021 - 4:55pm

An active late June weather pattern resulted in several consecutive days of heavy rainfall and thunderstorms across the region.

On June 25, storms produced a brief multi-vortex EF-1 tornado near Danforth, along with heavy rainfall south of the Kankakee River Valley, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).

Then on June 26 storms produced three additional EF-0 tornadoes in the area, and heavy rainfall resulted in flash flooding in the Chicago metro and areas farther south.

Will County Health Department: COVID isn’t over yet

Published by admin on Tue, 06/29/2021 - 4:48pm

With infection rates low, the state’s economy reopened, and many folks planning for a ‘back to normal’ summer, the Will County Health Department (WCHD) has a message for residents to keep in mind: The pandemic isn’t over yet.

WCHD Executive Director Sue Olenek warns that regardless of how the virus progresses from here with future discoveries concerning COVID-19 and its variants, residents should not act like the pandemic never existed.

Life as we knew it before will never return, she said.

Opioid deaths down in Will County

Published by admin on Tue, 04/20/2021 - 5:30pm

For several years, the office of the Will County Coroner has posted a list of countywide deaths due to opioid intoxication on its website.

The list identifies the age, sex, and municipality or township where the death occurred, along with the final cause of death for each victim.

It’s a grim reminder of how the opioid crisis hits close to home.

But, Will County’s Director of Substance Use Initiatives Dr. Kathleen Burke said the most recent numbers reveal a possible positive trend.

Amazon makes half million dollar investment in Will County

Published by admin on Tue, 03/02/2021 - 5:48pm

A drive along I-55 or Route 53 toward Joliet is all anyone needs to see the increased presence of e-commerce giant Amazon in Will County.

Now, Amazon has pledged funds into the region for workforce and economic development.

On Feb. 25, the Community Foundation of Will County (CFWC) announced that Amazon has donated $500,000 to invest in workforce development and education in Will County.

Vaccine doses set to increase with third option available

Published by admin on Tue, 03/02/2021 - 5:37pm

The state of Illinois is expected to receive thousands of doses of the new Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine on Wednesday, March 3.

The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) reported this week that 83,000 doses of the new vaccine, which received emergency authorization from the FDA late Friday, is expected to be shipped out primarily to mass vaccination sites in the state. The remaining doses will be shipped to other providers across the state.

Will County remains under Tier 3 mitigations

Published by admin on Tue, 01/19/2021 - 5:02pm

Nine of the state’s 11 regions saw their resurgence mitigation requirements to battle the novel coronavirus rolled back at the beginning of this week.

But, Will County was not among those areas where guidelines were relaxed.

Will County and Kankakee County make up Region 7, one of only two regions in the state that remain in Tier 3 mitigations. Region 4, the St. Louis metro east area, also remains in Tier 3.

Regions 1, 2, and 6 are now in Tier 1 mitigations. This includes Grundy County which is part of Region 2.

Will County warns residents of rising COVID-19 rate

Published by admin on Tue, 01/12/2021 - 3:43pm

Region 7 is headed toward rolling back from Tier 3 mitigations, put in place in November by Gov. JB Pritzker to help fight the spread of the novel coronavirus.

But the Will County Health Department warns that while Region 7 — Will and Kankakee counties — is set to hit the metrics for that rollback, Will County alone has seen cases on the rise.

As of Jan. 9, the Region 7 test positivity seven day rolling average was 11%. But the average in Will County was higher, at 12.6%.

Will County COVID-19 positivity rate at 13.9%

Published by admin on Tue, 12/15/2020 - 5:40pm

The first vaccinations to combat the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic have been administered in Illinois.
On Tuesday, those first vaccinations in the state were given to health care workers in Peoria.
“This is a beginning for the state of Illinois, people getting vaccinated, particularly our healthcare workers, is an exciting moment,” Gov. JB Pritzker said during an event in Peoria, where several of those workers were vaccinated on camera.

Governor: Thanksgiving likely to have a negative effect on COVID numbers

Published by admin on Tue, 12/01/2020 - 5:16pm

Tier 3 resurgence mitigations continue to stay in effect across the state.

On Monday, Gov. JB Pritzker said the state would evaluate any effects of the Thanksgiving holiday before making any changes regarding the current resurgence mitigations.