Coronavirus in Colorado: COVID-19 latest updates across the state – The Denver Channel

DENVER — As the number of positive coronavirus cases rose in Colorado this week, event cancellations and postponements were also on the rise — both here and across the country.

Colleges announced plans for moving to online classes, and school districts prepared students and parents for that possibility. The NBA and the National Hockey League suspended their seasons, and college basketball conference tournaments were also called off.

Click here for the latest update on the number of cases, the age, gender and location of presumptive positive, indeterminate and confirmed cases from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

Below, we’re updating this blog with the latest information regarding COVID-19 in Colorado.

Latest updates:

Friday, March 13

The following major school districts will be closed due to rising concerns over the spread of the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, in Colorado. Note: This is not the full list.

— Denver Public Schools: Monday, March 16 through April 6; no remote learning.
— Cherry Creek Schools: Friday, March 13 through Friday, March 27
— Aurora Public Schools: Monday, March 16 through Friday, March 27
— Jeffco Schools: Monday, March 16 through Friday, March 20; remote learning during this time.
— Littleton Public Schools: Monday, March 16 through Sunday, March 29;
— Douglas County Schools: Monday, March 16 through Friday, March 27; remote learning during this time
— 27J Schools: Now through Friday, March 27
— Boulder Valley School District: Friday, March 13 through Friday, March 27
— St. Vrain Valley Schools: Friday, March 13 through Friday, March 27.

Thursday, March 12

11:04 p.m.: All remaining state basketball tournaments have been canceled, according to the Colorado High School Activities Association. In a statement, CHSAA officials said they were informed by the University of Denver that the school would no longer be able to host the Class 3A state basketball tournament. Read more here.

10:23 p.m.: The Town of Vail is implementing a Standing public Health Order issued by Eagle County. Read some of the changes that will be taking place until further notice.

10:18 p.m.: City of Lafayette Public facilities are closed until further notice due to “rapidly escalating concerns” of the COVID-19 outbreak in Colorado.

9:45 p.m.: All Adams 14 Schools and administrative offices will be closed beginning Mondy, March 16 through the end of Spring Break.

9:37 p.m.: Dawson School in Lafayette, Colo. will discontinue classes starting on Friday, March 13 for a minimum of two weeks, through the Spring Break. School officials are canceling classes out of an abundance of caution due to the rapid spread of the COVID-19. Students are advised to take everything home that they would need should the district transition to remote learning.

9:35 p.m.: Westminster Public Schools will join school districts across the Denver metro area in closing its doors on Monday, March 16 through March 30 to help stop the spread of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19. The district will begin implementing a supplemental learning program for children on March 16.

9:34 p.m.: The Douglas County School District will be closed from Monday, March 16 through Friday, March 27, officials say. The closure includes Before and After Care (BASE), preschool, outdoor education, and any DCSD-sponsored spring break activities, field trips, and camps, as well as facility rentals. Though schools will close, students are strongly encouraged to attend Friday, March 13 to receive instructional materials and directions to be ready for remote learning during the week of March 23-27. Parents are advised to pick up any medication or other material from school before the end of the school day.

9:29 p.m.: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is suspending all public gatherings worldwide until further notice. This includes stake conferences, leadership conferences and other large gatherings; all public worship services including sacrament meetings, branch, and ward and stake activities.

9:08 p.m.: Littleton Public Schools is closing all schools starting Monday, March 16 through Sunday, March 29 in an effort to prevent the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19). School will be in session on Friday, March 13, district officials say. All after-school activities, athletics, events and performances will remain suspended through April 5. Officials said that while they do not have a confirmed case of the new virus, “this closure is being made out of an abundance of caution to help prevent and/or slow the spread of COVID-19 in our community, especially to those who are most vulnerable.”

8:36 p.m.: Eagle, Garfield and Pitkin counties have banned all gatherings and events of more than 50 people to minimize the health impacts of COVID-19, which as been found in the region and which as been found to have been spread via community transmission. The public health order is effective until April 8.

8:13 pm.: Celine Dion has postponed the remainder of the North American leg of her Courage World Tour. She was scheduled to play at the Pepsi Center on March 24. Rescheduled dates will be announced shortly, a statement read.

9:36 p.m.: The Lowry Blvd. drive-up testing facility in Denver says it will now operate for only two hours instead of four on Friday due to the “overwhelming response” in the first two days. The drive-up testing facility will now operate from noon to 2 p.m. and will only test the first 100-150 people in the queue. All others are advised to seek testing from a private provider. More on this story here.

8:12 p.m.: St. Vrain Valley Schools will also be closing all schools starting Friday, March 13 through the end of Spring Break after a person in Boulder County tested positive for the novel coronavirus and came in contact with others in the community, a spokesperson said on Twitter. While classes will not be in sessions, parents and students are encouarged to drop by their schools to pick up student medication, devices, and other learning materials they may need in the event of an extended school closure.

8:12 p.m.: Jeffco Public Schools is joining several other Colorado school districts in closing all schools starting March 16 through March 20. Families will be allowed to come to school on Friday, March 13, to quickly pick up any items they may have left at the school such as supplies, medication, and technology during normal school hours.

But parents, it’s not going to be an extended spring break like at DPS – Jeffco Public School is moving to remote learning. Students will work with their teachers to continue instruction from home during this period, officials say.

Also effective immediately: Jeffco Schools is canceling evening events and extracurricular activities starting Friday night.

8:10 p.m.: The Silverthorne Recreation Center is closing until further notice after it was informed one of its employees is being tested for COVID-19. During the closure, the Silverthorne Recreation Center will undergo a deep clean and disinfection procedure, as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The center will remain closed until an update is received regarding the employee’s COVID-19 results, officials say.

7:57 p.m.: Commerce City has also issued a local state of emergency in response to COVID-19, which will allows the city to “effectively deploy resources and coordinate with federal, state, and county emergency agencies and public health agencies regarding response, recovery, and mitigation efforts.”

All Commerce City facilities, including the Municipal Court, remain closed to the public through March 29, officials say. Court dates that take place during the closure will be rescheduled. All parks, recreation and golf programs and activities are suspended through at least March 29

7:33 p.m.: All Boulder Valley School District schools will close beginning Friday, March 13 through the end of Spring Break, district officials say.

7:10 p.m.: All Pikes Peak schools will be closed starting Monday, March 16 through Friday, March 27 to slow the potential spread of infection from the novel coronavirus. School officials say they will reassess the situation closer to the end date and decide if students and staff should return on Monday, March 30. During the closure, all schools, district facilities and buses will undergo additional deep cleanings with hospital-grade disinfectants, officials say.

7:00 p.m.: Denver Public Schools will close starting Monday, March 16 through April 6 for students and staff in response to the rapid spread of the novel coronavirus in Colorado. Read the full story on this, and other closures across the Denver metro area here.

6:53 p.m.: The City of Aspen is declaring a local disaster emergency effective immediately as a proactive measure to “slow down the potential spread, impacts and damage of COVID-19” in that city. While the city plans to implement the order for seven days, city council will meet no Friday at 3 p.m. to consider an extension.

6:49 p.m.: Eagle County, which has 11 diagnosed cases of COVID-19, is limiting social gatherings to no more than 50 people in response to the community spread of novel coronavirus, Eagle County Public Health officials say. The order is effective until at least April 8.

6:49 p.m.: All Cherry Creek School District schools, including daycare, will close starting Friday, March 13 through Friday, March 27 to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, the district said on Twitter. Here is a link to the superintendent’s letter, though the website is not currently working.

6:41 p.m.: All Colorado Children’s Chorale activities have been suspended effective immediately to protect the health and young singers and their families from the rapidly spreading coronavirus in Colorado.

6:19 p.m.: Denver Mayor Michael Hancock, DPS Superintendent Susana Cordova, members of the DPS board of education and Denver Health Infectious Disease expert William J. Burman, M.D. will “make an announcement regarding the school district’s calendar” at 7 p.m. We will have updates as soon as they are available and expect to stream the update live.

6:03 p.m.: 27J in Brighton is suspending all classes district-wide until March 27 following a presumptive positive case of coronavirus within the district. District officials would not say which school was affected, but said they were advised to closed Riverdale Ridge High School and Reunion Elementary by the Tri-County Health Department. All other events and activities sponsored or associated with 27J have also been cancelled until further notice.

5:52 p.m.: The Colorado Brewers Guild will suspend the 7th Annual Collaboration Fest on April 4, 2020 at the Fillmore Auditorium indefinitely due to the ongoing situation surrounding COVID-19. There currently is not a rescheduled date for the festival, officials say.

5:45 p.m.: Colorado Christian University is transitioning all traditional undergraduate classes in the College of Undergraduate Studies from in-seat to online instruction beginning Friday, March 20, continuing for the duration of the semester. Additionally, on-campus residence halls and dining services will close for the remainder of the semester at 5 p.m. on Saturday, March 21. Traditional undergraduate students should plan to remain at home or return home for the remainder of the semester after spring break, officials say. Read more here.

5:37 p.m.: The Tri-County Health Department says it has identified three “presumptive positive” cases of COVID-19 in Adams County — the first three in that county, according to county health officials.

— A woman in her 30s from Brighton with uncertain exposure
— A woman in her 30s from Northglenn who is hospitalized and had no travel history
— A woman in her 60s from Westminster with travel history.

The Tri-County Health Department has begun contacting investigations to determine if there were any other potential exposures. Please note: This new information differs from information released by the CDPHE earlier today, where the state department of health only identified two cases out of Adams County.

5:39 p.m.: Aurora Public Schools and Pickens Technical College will be extending Spring Break for an additional week to slow the spread of COVID-19. Spring Break will now last from March 16 through March 27. All athletics, activities, events, facilities rentals and childcare are also canceled.

5:20 p.m.: The Colorado State Capitol is canceling all public tours beginning Friday, March 13 until further notice.

5:18 p.m.: MSU Denver Athletics is suspending all athletic competition and recruiting following the NCAA announcement that it has canceled spring sport championships due to the novel coronavirus.

5:15 p.m. Regis University will move all of its on-campus classrooms to remote, online learning. starting Monday, March 30 through Monday, April 13 in response to the growing spread of the COVID-19 virus in Colorado. Read more here.

5 p.m.: A CU Boulder employee who worked on Monday from 8 a.m. to noon in limited areas of the Center for Community has tested positive for COVID-19, CU Boulder officials say. The school is working with Boulder County Public Health who is reaching out to individuals who may have been in contact with the employee and are asking them to stay home for 14 days to monitor their symptoms.

CU Boulder will be hosting a virtual town hall to discuss impacts to the university and the surrounding community on Friday, March 13 from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.

4:56 p.m.: Four new “presumptive positive” cases of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, have been identified in Colorado. The CDPHE identified the new cases as follows:

— A man in his 20s from Eagle County. It’s unclear how the man was exposed.
— A woman in her 30s from Eagle County. It’s unclear how the woman was exposed.
— A man in his 80s from Eagle County. It’s unclear how the man was exposed.
— A woman in her 30s from Eagle County. It’s unclear how the woman was exposed.

The total of number of COVID-19 cases in Colorado now stands at 48 with an indeterminate case still pending conclusive results.

4:46 p.m.: Denver Mayor Michael Hancock has declared a State of Emergency for the City and County of Denver in response to the novel coronavirus, COVID-19. The declaration may make additional emergency resources available to assist in Denver’s emergency response and gives the city greater flexibility to procure needed resources, a city spokesperson said. The emergency order is valid for seven days and goes through March 19.

As well as declaring a State of Emergency for the city and county, Hancock is discouraging large gatherings from taking place within city limits to protect public health and safety and mitigate the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The city has identified 9 people who have tested presumptive positive, and an additional 22 people have been quarantined, a city spokesperson said in a news release. The 22 individuals are not showing any symptoms.

4:24 p.m.: A Denver DMV location at 2855 Tremont Place closed Thursday at 2 p.m. as a precaution after an employee began exhibiting flu-like symptoms consistent with COVID-19, the City and County of Denver says. The employee is being tested and the branch is being thoroughly cleaned and sanitized. Anyone who visited the Denver DMV Tremont location either on March 11 or Wednesday, March 11 or Thursday, Mach 12 and interacted with DMV staff is urged to pay close attention to whether they feel ill and consider self-quarantine.

4:23 p.m.: The Denver Public Library will be closing the Montbello, Smiley, Woodbury, Virginia Village, and Eugene Field branches until further notice out of an abudance of caution as the city responds to the spread of the novel coronavirus.

4:11 p.m.: The Toughest Monster Truck Tour is postponing the April 17 and 18 event scheduled at Budweiser Events Center in Loveland to the weekend of August 21 and 22 due to coronavirus concerns from our fans and health officials.

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