Lane closures are planned Saturday on the Turner Diagonal. (KDOT)
As part of the Turner Diagonal Interchange construction project there will be lane closures on westbound I-70 and ramp closures to and from the Turner Diagonal and 78th Street in Wyandotte County this Saturday, Nov. 7, that will affect traffic.
The Kansas Department of Transportation recommends that motorists consider taking an alternate route. The work is necessary to finish the permanent pavement markings needed for this project and open the project to unrestricted traffic, according to KDOT.
• Two lanes of westbound I-70 from 65th Street to 78th street will be closed from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. • The ramp from westbound I-70 to northbound and southbound Turner Diagonal will be closed from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. • The ramps from northbound and southbound Turner Diagonal Freeway to westbound I-70 will be closed from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. • The ramp from westbound I-70 to 78th Street will be closed from 77 a.m. to 1 p.m.
More information about the project can be found on the project website: TheTurnerDiagonal.com.
Wyandotte County reported a cumulative 8,710 COVID-19 cases on Friday, an increase of 53, with a cumulative 166 deaths, an increase of one, according to the Unified Government Health Department website. (From UG COVID-19 webpage)Kansas saw an additional 5,418 COVID-19 cases from Wednesday to Friday, for a cumulative total of 97,633. There were an additional 79 deaths statewide from Wednesday to Friday, for a cumulative total of 1,166, according to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment. (KDHE graphic)
Doctors at the University of Kansas Health System are anticipating a rollout soon from the FDA on emergency use authorization for monoclonal antibodies.
KU Health System is getting information about monoclonal antibodies rolling out from the FDA now, according to Dr. Steven Stites, chief medical director. The FDA is expected to issue emergency use authorization on monoclonal antibodies soon, the doctors said during their Friday news conference.
Dr. Dana Hawkinson, director of medical prevention and control at KU Health System, said these antibodies will be for outpatients. The health system has been working on its protocols about six weeks now, he said. The FDA will approve the emergency use when they think it is safe, beneficial and valuable, he said.
Dr. Stites said an interim analysis has been published on it by the New England Journal of Medicine. The hospitalization rate after giving a monoclonal antibody treatment dropped from 6.5 percent down to about 1.4 percent, he said.
“That’s a pretty significant decline,” Dr. Stites said. If it turns out to be real, it’s really impactful, he said. It is still early data, he added.
“We’ll be a distribution site,” Dr. Stites said. Patients will be eligible based on their age and weight, and comorbid conditions, he said. As more monoclonal antibodies become available, those restrictions will probably loosen, he said. Hospitals will probably get the distributions first, he believes.
Dr. Hawkinson said a lot will depend on when people started having symptoms. It’s generally believed, because of study results, that if monoclonal antibodies are used early, they will have more effect. From seven to 10 days after infection is considered to be the best time to give the monoclonal antibodies.
The inpatient data didn’t look as good as the outpatient data on it because it may have been given too late for hospital inpatients, according to Dr. Hawkinson.
On Friday, KU Health System experienced its highest number yet of COVID-19 inpatients, at 53, with 18 in the intensive care unit and 10 on ventilators, Dr. Hawkinson said. There were an additional 28 COVID-19 patients considered in the recovery stage, but still in the hospital.
COVID-19 case numbers in the metropolitan Kansas City area have risen 10 percent from Thursday to Friday, and 10 percent from Wednesday to Thursday, according to Dr. Stites. He said people here know how to flatten the curve: Wear masks, socially distance, wash hands and do not gather in groups.
Wyandotte County reported a cumulative 8,710 COVID-19 cases on Friday, an increase of 53, with a cumulative 166 deaths, an increase of one, according to the Unified Government Health Department website.
Kansas saw an additional 5,418 COVID-19 cases from Wednesday to Friday, for a cumulative total of 97,633. There were an additional 79 deaths statewide from Wednesday to Friday, for a cumulative total of 1,166, according to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.
Free COVID-19 testing available on Saturday
A free COVID-19 pop-up test will continue from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 7, at the Beatrice Lee Community Center, 1310 N. 10th St., Kansas City, Kansas.
The pop-up test is through Vibrant Health and the Wyandotte County Health Equity Task Force.
UG tests will be available on Monday. The Unified Government Health Department has moved its COVID-19 testing from the 6th and Ann location to the former Kmart at 78th and State Avenue in Kansas City, Kansas. The hours are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Tests are free for those who live or work in Wyandotte County. The tests are now saliva COVID-19 tests.
The tests now are open to asymptomatic people as well as those who have symptoms or have been exposed to COVID-19. Check with the UG Health Department’s Facebook page to see if there have been any changes in the schedule because of the weather or for other reasons. Bring something that shows that you live or work in Wyandotte County, such as a utility bill.
