Perry
According to information from the Perry Daily Journal, local schools practice communication protocols after positive test results within districts.
Perry Public Schools recently received notification a teacher at one of their sites tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Perry Daily Journal.
Upon notification, school officials worked with the Noble County Health Department, who reassured officials of the educator’s self-quarantine before and during the contagious stage. Officials with the Noble County Health department also shared being confident the students are safe to be in school, the Perry Daily Journal reported.
According to the Perry Daily Journal, listed in Perry Public School protocol, should a student be quarantined, whether they tested positive or were in ‘direct contact’ with someone who tested positive, education of the student will not be hindered.
Oklahoma City
According to information provided by the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation (OMRF), when COVID-19 hit Oklahoma, the state had only minimal testing options available. In most labs with standard equipment on hand, technicians could only complete a few dozen tests per day.
According to OMRF, utilizing a Fluidigm Biomark, a $300,000 piece of scientific equipment which uses microfluidics and a technique called reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (or RT-PCR), they could gather vast amounts of data from limited quantities of sample materials and detect small amounts of virus.
An OU Medicine facilities crew renovated an empty lab to accommodate the personnel and specialized equipment the effort would require. The Biomark system employs a technology known as “microfluidics,” minimizing the amounts of precious reagents required to run tests. It also possesses the ability to process multiple samples at once, meaning it holds the potential to deliver many times more results on a daily basis than a standard testing system, OMRF said.
In June, the OU-OMRF team filed its final application with the FDA to launch the new test. Technicians then prepare and load batches of samples, up to 186 at a time, into the Biomark, where each run takes about six hours, OMRF reported.
During this time, said Guthridge, the machine tests each sample five times, which ensures accuracy, and because of the Biomark’s “sensitivity,” it can detect infections other commercially available tests can miss, according to OMRF.
Oklahoma City According to GasBuddy’s daily survey of 2,294 stations,
According to GasBuddy’s daily survey of 2,294 stations, Oklahoma gas prices have fallen 2.9 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $1.87/g today. Gas prices in Oklahoma are 4.0 cents per gallon higher than a month ago and stand 36.9 cents per gallon lower than a year ago.
According to GasBuddy price reports, the cheapest station in Oklahoma is priced at $1.64/g today while the most expensive is $2.29/g, a difference of 65.0 cents per gallon. The lowest price in the state today is $1.64/g while the highest is $2.29/g, a difference of 65.0 cents per gallon.
The national average price of gasoline has fallen 2.8 cents per gallon in the last week, averaging $2.21/g today. The national average is up 3.7 cents per gallon from a month ago and stands 34.2 cents per gallon lower than a year ago, GasBuddy reported.
Stillwater
According to information provided from Oklahoma State Athletics, the University of Tulsa’s season opener against Oklahoma State has been postponed one week and will now be played on Sept. 19 at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater.
The game was originally scheduled for this Saturday, Sept. 12, Oklahoma State University athletics reported.
According to Oklahoma State University athletics, in attempting to deal with COVID-19 protocols effectively, the Tulsa football team has been limited in practice sessions since the beginning of preseason camp on August 7. Tulsa had a nine-day pause due to multiple positive tests and was limited to seven practices in the 17 days of preseason camp, Oklahoma State Athletics reported.
Oklahoma City
According to information provided by the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODT), two major interstate projects starting after Labor Day will significantly impact Interstate 40 traffic in the Del City area and Interstate 44 traffic near the Will Rogers World Airport.
According to the ODT, this long-awaited project will replace six I-40 bridges in the Del City area, five of which are structurally deficient. These bridges at Crutcho Creek, S.E. 15th St. and Sooner Rd. have all required significant maintenance in recent years including multiple emergency repairs to keep vehicle and truck traffic moving in this growing corridor between the I-35/Fort Smith Junction and Tinker Air Force Base.
The nearly $80 million bridge replacement project between Sunnylane Road and Hudiburg Drive starts Tuesday. Eastbound I-40 will be narrowed two lanes in this area with intermittent ramp closures at Sunnylane Road, Southeast 15th Street. and Sooner Road. Motorists also can expect I-40 to be narrowed to one lane at times on nights and weekends, as needed, as well as significant ramp closures during the project, the ODT said.
This project was awarded in June to Manhattan Road and Bridge Co. of Tulsa. Overall completion is set for spring 2023, weather permitting, and the contract includes nearly $2 million worth of incentives for early completion, the ODT reported.