Ivy Tech Community College is delaying the continuation of current courses and the start of new 8-week courses until March 23

Ivy Tech students are currently on spring break. After the continuation, all courses will be online at least through April 5th. Officials plan to monitor and adjust this timeline as more is learned about COVID-19 nationwide and in the state.

Ivy Tech locations will remain open to provide student and business office assistance. Students will still be able to  meet with advisors, admissions and financial aid, use computers, and access  faculty as needed. Faculty and staff will continue to be on location to provide assistance.

Accommodations will be made for labs, clinicals and some technology courses to meet in groups of 10 or less as needed. That is if social distancing can be assured. Information regarding such meetings will be provided to students from their faculty.

Ivy Tech offers 16-week courses that started in January and were at the midway point in the semester when spring break started on March 9. The restart of those courses will be delayed one week with this change.

The College also offers a large number of 8-week courses, which have been  scheduled to begin on March 16. The start date of those second 8-week courses will be delayed with all courses starting again on March 23. The semester will extend an additional week and conclude May 17.

Ivy Tech will continue to post updates at www.ivytech.edu/COVID-19

As reported by our news-gathering partners at Network Indiana and Total Talk News Networks:

• The Indiana High School Athletic Association is placing visitor restrictions for all high school tournaments. The high school boys basketball tournament on Saturday and girls gymnastics final on Thursday will continue, but attendance will be limited due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Only 75 admissions will be allowed for each team for the boys basketball tournament. Everyone except coaches, support staff, school administrators and immediate families of the players will not be allowed to attend.
• The Indiana State School Music Association has canceled all music events through April 11 to protect students, schools and communities from the spread of the coronavirus. More than 35,000 students from more than 300 schools across the state would have been participating in the events. The cancellation includes ISSMA State Show Choir and Jazz Finals.
• Both Walt Disney World and the Universal Orlando resort will close this weekend to try and stop the spread of the coronavirus. The four Disney parks and two water parks will close the morning of March 15h through the end of the month. Hotels and the Disney Springs retail complex will remain open. The Disney Cruise Line will suspend all new departures starting this Saturday through the end of the month. Universal will close both of its theme parks and its water park at the end of business on Sunday.
• The NBA could be out of action for a minimum of 30 days. ESPN reports league owners are asking commissioner Adam Silver to reevaluate the league’s suspension of play in 30 days. The NBA is expected to give a timetable in a formal announcement soon. Most major sports leagues have been suspended or canceled due to the coronavirus outbreak. The NCAA also canceled all of its remaining winter and spring sporting events and championships, including the NCAA Tournament.

Columbus Regional Hospital has launched a triage resource call center for information on the coronavirus and COVID-19.

The call center is being staffed by trained nurses. If you have any questions about local exposure or symptoms, you can call the center at 812-379-4449.

CRH is asking those with concerns to use  the  call center first or to contact their doctor or physician’s office. If you are experiencing a true medical emergency you should call 911.

The best way to protect yourself or your loved ones is:

• • Avoiding large public gatherings, also being called social distancing.
  • Washing your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds and using alcohol-based sanitizer as a secondary option.
  • Cover coughs/sneezes with your arm or a tissue.
  • Not going in public if you are ill, especially if you have a fever.
  • Avoid touching your mouth, nose, or eyes.
  • Avoid exposure to others who are sick.
  • Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces

For more local resources and information on the coronavirus and COVID-19, you can go to bartholomew.in.gov/emergency-management#covid-19

Columbus Regional Health and Schneck Medical Center are announcing new restrictions to protect their patients, public and staff from the coronavirus and the associated COVID-19 illness.

Effective Friday, Columbus Regional Hospital will be restricting public entrances at the 17th Street hospital campus. Those visiting the facility will be actively screened for the virus. If you are trying to visit the hospital, you are asked to enter either through the emergency department, which is entrance 1 off of 17th Street, or through entrance 2, which is off of 18th Street.

Effective Friday at Schneck Medical Center, every visitor and patient will be screened before entering the main hospital building. You should consider arriving early for any scheduled appointments.  The hospital main entrance will be open from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday. Schneck Professional Building will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. The emergency department will remain open around the clock.

Schneck will be expanding current visitor restrictions, limiting visitors to two per patient.  Visitors must be 18 years old and older and anyone with fever and/or chills, sore throat, muscle aches, runny or stuffy nose, cough, fatigue, headache, and vomiting and/or diarrhea is asked to refrain from visiting patients.

All visitors must wash their hands (soap and water) or use alcohol-based hand sanitizer before and after visiting a patient. Hand sanitizer can be found throughout the hospital as well as outside each patient’s room.

Schneck is also announcing that all support groups, seminars, and programs hosted at Schneck Medical Center are cancelled through March 31. In addition, the Live Well Expo scheduled for Saturday, April 4 has been postponed until further notice.

If you experience a fever with a cough or shortness of breath and have traveled to an area with an ongoing spread of COVID-19 or have had contact with someone suspected of having COVID-19 and suspect you may have COVID-19, you should contract the Indiana State Department of Health at 317-233-7125 (317-233-1325 after hours).

Simultaneously monitor your symptoms and seek medical attention if your condition worsens, especially if you have shortness of breath or difficulty breathing. Call ahead before visiting the doctor or a hospital so they can adequately prepare for your arrival.  Tell them you may or may not have COVID-19.

For more local resources and information on the coronavirus and COVID-19, you can go to bartholomew.in.gov/emergency-management#covid-19

Press release from the Governor’s Office

Gov. Eric Holcomb announced additional steps the state is taking to reduce the spread of novel coronavirus COVID-19  in Indiana.

“This is a time when we must do all we can to reduce the spread of COVID-19, protect our most vulnerable populations and reduce their potential to acquire or spread this virus,” said Gov. Holcomb.

“While some actions are drastic, now, not later, is the time to act.”

Here are the actions Gov. Holcomb is initiating today.

• Non-essential gatherings must be limited to no more than 250 people. This includes any event or gathering of people who are in one room or a single space at the same time, such as cafeterias, churches, stadiums, meeting and conference rooms, auditoriums and the like. This guidance applies to professional, social, community and similar other gatherings. Detailed guidance will be posted on the Indiana State Department of Health website by the end of the day.
• Effective immediately, school corporations will be provided with a 20-day waiver of the required 180 instructional days for use as needed for the remainder of the academic year. The waived days do not need to be used consecutively and can be leveraged as needed.
  • If a school corporation has evidence of community spread or a confirmed positive test for coronavirus, officials should consult with the Indiana Department of Education and the Indiana State Department of Health for additional steps. Schools should plan now for broader closures, including eLearning and remote classroom options.
  • The Department of Education will release additional guidance detailing the process for submitting waiver requests as early as Friday.
  • Schools should follow the guidelines for non-essential gatherings as they make decisions about non-essential extra-curricular or co-curricular activities.
• Child care and adult day care facilities should institute social distancing and minimize large gatherings. Temporary suspension of operations should be done in consultation with the Family and Social Services and ISDH in the instance of documented community spread.
• Nursing facilities and hospitals should restrict and screen visitors. Any individual who is allowed to visit is restricted to the patient’s room. Visitors are not allowed if they present with any of this criteria:
  • Display signs or symptoms of illness, especially respiratory illness
  • Have traveled internationally or been in contact with someone with a respiratory illness in the past 14 days
  • Reside in a community with a known COVID-19 case
  • Those who are less than 18 years of age
• The Indiana Department of Correction has suspended visitation at all facilities as a precaution for the health and safety of IDOC staff and offenders.
• Individuals over 60 years of age or those with a known underlying health issue such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes or chronic respiratory disease should limit their public exposure. Whenever possible, friends and family should arrange to provide food and other essential items.
• Those who run senior centers and congregate meal services should consider suspending congregate meals services and arrange for home delivery
• Encourage businesses to utilize telework policies, if available

Gov. Holcomb is also issuing guidance for state employee operations. The state will suspend all non-essential out-of-state and international travel beginning today and for the next 45 days. The state is also providing employees with guidance about the use of leave and remote work options for limited durations while ensuring the delivery of essential state services.

“I fully expect there will be additional actions warranted in the coming days,” Gov. Holcomb said. “Just as we have since the beginning of the year, we are working with partners at all levels to secure all necessary resources for any escalation of this virus.”

For local updates on the virus, you can go to bartholomew.in.gov/emergency-management#covid-19

Columbus Police are asking any businesses or residents along State Street that have outside video surveillance footage from Feb. 26th to contact the department. Specifically they are looking for any video capturing roads or alleyways that night.

Police are looking for more information on the homicide of 37 year old Leonardo Rodriguez-Flores, of Columbus, whose body was found in a store parking lot in the 800 block of South Marr Road at about 11:15 p.m. the night of Feb. 26th. He had been shot in the head and killed.

Rodriguez-Flores’s vehicle, a silver 1998 Honda Civic, was found in a parking lot in the 2700 block of State Street.

If you have any video, or any other information, you can contact Detective Maren Crabtree at 812-376-2632. Tips or information can be left anonymously.

The Hope Police Department is asking residents to search their own properties for any clues into the month-long disappearance of a local woman.

57-year-old Donna Mitchell, was last seen the evening of Feb. 11th. Family members said that she was going to a friend’s house in Letts in Decatur County at the time of her disappearance. She is believed to be driving a maroon 2004 Chevrolet Trailblazer with Indiana license plate 902 QAK.

The police department investigation reveals she was last seen at about 8 p.m.that evening. She was caught on video walking out the door of the Brown Bottle Liquor store in Hartsville and has not been seen since.

The police department reports that they have searched every conceivable route between the two towns, including an aerial search by Indiana State Police.

Now they are asking property owners between Hartsville and Letts to search their properties for any clues that may have been missed. If you come across anything, no matter how insignificant, you should contact the Hope Police Department at 812-546-4015 or 911.

The Columbus Area Chamber of Commerce will be postponing its annual meeting due to virus concerns. Cindy Frey, president of the local chamber, announced this morning that the event will be rescheduled for May 15th.

She said the choice was made to delay “out of an abundance of caution and respect for members’ health.”

The lunchtime event was to have been held at The Commons on March 25the and normally has a crowd of 500 or more. Frey said there were already 430 tickets sold and those will be honored at the rescheduled event.

The Women in Leadership Lunch, which was originally scheduled for May 15 at The Commons, will be rescheduled for later this year.

Columbus police say that a man was taken into custody by the SWAT team after barricading himself inside an apartment yesterday morning on Rosebud Drive.

Officers were called to the apartment at about 9:25 a.m. Wednesday morning on a reported disturbance. They found that 26-year-old Michael E. Schuette of Columbus was wanted on an outstanding warrant from Marion County. He was also possibly armed.

Police called in the joint city-county SWAT team and crisis negotiators who talked Schuette into surrendering.

During the incident, which lasted about 90 minutes, nearby Smith Elementary School was locked down and Waycross Drive was closed as a precaution.