CC)--Enid City commissioners Tuesday night approved a letter of intent for the city of Enid to purchase the downtown Great Plains Bank building for $250,000. Under the agreement, the bank will continue to lease the building, at 401 W. Broadway, for a year in length until it is able to move into a new facility, which the bank is currently seeking. That proposed lease amount will be negotiated. The city will also lease a portion of the building facilities to the nonprofit youth program Making a Difference, an after-school and summer youth program focused on middle school children. A draft lease agreement with the program, also approved Tuesday, will also include shared use of the building’s second-floor conference room. United Way of Northwest Oklahoma currently occupies a suite on the floor. In other business Tuesday commissioners approved purchasing twelve 2021 Ford Explorers for the Enid Police Department at a total cost of over $500,000; renewing a year of the city of Enid’s third-party employee benefits agreement with Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Oklahoma; paying $110,000 to the Garfield County Criminal Justice Authority for an annual county jail service agreement.
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ND)--The Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) and Oklahoma Physician Manpower Training Commission (PMTC) recently helped bring a new doctor to Enid, through the Physician Loan Repayment Program. The four-year program, which helps repay medical student loans for recipients serving rural communities across the state, helped place Dr. Christopher Hutchinson, D.O. at St. Mary's Regional Medical Center. Hutchinson, who serves as a family physician and obstetrician, grew up in Vici, in rural Dewey County, and served his residency in Oklahoma City. Since 2013, TSET has worked with Oklahoma Physician Manpower Training Commission to financially support the placement of physicians in rural areas of Oklahoma.
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SO)--A convicted sex offender was arrested in Kingfisher County, accused of raping a 14-year-old girl. Kingfisher police said 25 year-old Dakota Welch ran away with the victim and her cousin on September 30. Welch has been registered as a sex offender for life since 2017, following a 2015 rape case in Kingfisher County. Kingfisher Police Chief David Catron told News9, during their investigation and search for the teen Welch turned himself in. The victim reportedly told police she had no idea Welch was 25, nor a sex offender. Welch faces several charges including second-degree rape, harboring a runaway child, lewd or indecent proposals/acts to a child, failure to register as a sex offender, and violation of a safety zone. Welch faces life in prison.
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CV)—Nineteen more virus-related deaths and 1,307 new confirmed coronavirus cases were reported in the state since Tuesday, according to daily numbers released late this morning by the Oklahoma State Department of Health. 14,666 cases are considered active in the state. A total of 110,855 Oklahomans have tested positive for COVID-19 and the total number of deaths went up to 1,210. 870 Oklahomans currently are hospitalized for treatment of the virus. So far, 94,979 Oklahomans have recovered from the virus with 1,281 more cases considered recovered since Tuesday.
There have been 2272 positive COVID-19 cases, and 25 deaths in Garfield County. 2082 of those cases and all 25 deaths have been in Enid. Currently, Garfield County is in a "moderate risk" or Orange Level 2 category as defined by the OSDH. In surrounding counties: Kingfisher County has reported 508 cases, Blaine County is at 194 cases, Major 153, Alfalfa 115, and Grant 80.
COVID-19 Oklahoma Test Results
10.21.20
|
Cases |
110,855 |
|
*Total Cumulative Negative Specimens to Date |
1,367,370 |
|
*Total Cumulative Number of Specimens to Date |
1,491,841 |
|
*Currently Hospitalized |
870 |
|
Total Cumulative Hospitalizations |
8,077 |
|
Identified Deaths in the Past 24 hours |
1 |
|
Total Cumulative Deaths |
1,210 |
*The total includes laboratory information provided to OSDH at the time of the report. Total counts may not reflect unique individuals. Data Source: Acute Disease Service, Oklahoma State Department of Health. As of 2020-10-21 at 7:00 a.m.
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SB)--There are two openings on the Enid School Board of Education. Qualified individuals interested in running as a candidate for the No. One seat and the No. Six seat on the Enid School District Board of Education may file to run at the Garfield County Election Board between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., December 7th through the 9th. Election packets with more information are available at the EPS Administrative Services Center, located at 500 S. Independence.
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