From OPALCO In the early morning hours of Wednesday, Jan. 13, a big storm hit the Northwest region of Washington state with wind gusts of 50-65 mph in the San Juan Island area. By 1 a.m., all of San Juan County was without power after large trees fell onto the Puget Sound Energy lines feeding  Continue Reading

From the Washington State Department Of Health On Jan. 15, the Washington State Department of Health announced that based on Governor Jay Inslee’s Healthy Washington – Roadmap to Recovery plan, all eight regions in Washington will remain in Phase 1 until at least Monday, Jan. 25. As outlined in the governor’s COVID-19 plan, regions must  Continue Reading

From San Juan County Since the last update on Thursday, Dec. 31, total cases in San Juan County have increased from 79 to 88. Eight of the new cases are on San Juan Island, and one is on Orcas Island. Approximately 28 individuals who are close contacts of positive cases are currently in active quarantine.  Continue Reading

From the Washington State Department of Health On Jan. 8, the Washington State Department of Health announced that based on Governor Jay Inslee’s Healthy Washington Roadmap to Recovery plan released earlier this week, that all eight regions in Washington will remain in Phase 1 until at least Monday, Jan. 18. As outlined in the Governor’s  Continue Reading

Who Is Eligible Now, Who Is Next In Line and Where Can You Get Vaccinated? From San Juan County This week, Washington State Governor Jay Inslee released details on a new two-phase plan for the limited reopening of some businesses and a return of some activities. The details are found here.  All counties begin in  Continue Reading

From Gov. Inslee’s Office On Jan. 5, Gov. Jay Inslee announced “Healthy Washington — Roadmap to Recovery,” a COVID-19 phased recovery plan. Beginning on Jan. 11, the state will follow a regional recovery approach with every region beginning in Phase 1. “No one was untouched by the effects of the pandemic in 2020; many have  Continue Reading

From San Juan County Since the last update on Friday, Dec. 25, the total cases in San Juan County have increased from 78 to 79. The new case is on Orcas Island. Current positive case numbers are available online at the San Juan County Case Count page. As indicated on that page, these numbers are  Continue Reading

From San Juan County San Juan County Health and Community Services staff provided the first COVID-19 vaccine to islanders on Wednesday, Dec. 30. As per state and federal guidelines, initial distribution is limited to health care professionals, emergency responders, and long-term care facility staff and residents. This group is known as “Phase 1A.” This first  Continue Reading

By San Juan County Since the last update on Friday, Dec. 18, the total cases in San Juan County have increased from 75 to 78. All of the three new cases are on San Juan Island. Current positive case numbers are available online at the county case count page. As indicated on that page, these  Continue Reading

By San Juan County Recent San Juan County COVID-19 case investigations have revealed a trend of lax COVID safety protocols on various construction and building sites across the islands. As in any workplace, consistent masking is a critical tool for preventing disease transmission. Work done alone or outside with greater than six feet of separation  Continue Reading

High-risk Health Workers, First Responders First In Line By San Juan County San Juan County Department of Health and Community Services has just received a shipment of 600 doses of the recently approved Moderna COVID-19 vaccine from the Washington State Department of Health. Department staff is actively completing the recently released vaccine-specific training, and these  Continue Reading

By Rep. Rick Larsen’s Office On Dec. 21, Rep. Rick Larsen (WA-02) voted to deliver much-needed relief to families and small businesses in Northwest Washington who continue to struggle from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. “With a third wave of COVID-19 spreading across the country, this long-overdue pandemic relief package addresses the continued public  Continue Reading

By San Juan County Since the last update on Friday, Dec. 11, total cases in San Juan County have increased from 71 to 75. All of the four new cases are on San Juan Island. Current positive case numbers are available online on the county case count page. As indicated on that page, these numbers  Continue Reading

By Friday Harbor Power Squadron Advanced Powerboat Handling seminars will be held on Zoom, from 6:30-8:30 p.m., Monday, Jan. 18, Feb. 15 and March 15, 2021 The Jan. 18 class will cover close-quarter maneuvering. The Feb. 15 class will cover understanding stability and balance and how your boat performs at sea. The March 15 class  Continue Reading

By Fred Woods, Superintendent, San Juan Island School District As we move into the final week before the schools’ winter break, I would like to take a moment to express my gratitude for your support during this unprecedented and difficult time for our students and families. I also want to wish you the happiest of  Continue Reading

By San Juan County Since the last update on Friday, Dec. 4, the total cases in San Juan County have increased from 66 to 71. One of these new cases is on Orcas Island, and four are on San Juan Island. Current positive case numbers are available online at the San Juan County Case count  Continue Reading