The announcement came from Ravalli County Public Health late Monday afternoon, July 13th: “It is with sadness and necessity that health officials are announcing the cancellation of the main portion of the 2020 Ravalli County Fair. In light of community spread and recent increase in daily new cases such a large gathering would increase the threat of exposure, leading to rapidly increasing spread of the Corona virus. This would significantly worsen the risk of illness and death to the general public. A high-expected attendance for the fair would make compliance with the Govorner's phase 2 directive essentially impossible. However fair organizers are working on a safe plan for a more limited event to allow FFA and 4H events to proceed, provided cases don’t significantly worsen between now and then.” The statement was from Karyn Johnston of Ravalli County Public Health. Ravalli County Fair officials will have more information about the announcement this week.

Ravalli County reported two new cases of COVID-19 as of Monday afternoon. One is a women in her 20s and the other a male in his 40s. There are now 12 active coronavirus cases in the valley, with contact tracing on all active cases. Two of the infected people are hospitalized. All the cases and close contacts are in isolation or quarantine. Again, the department urges social distancing, wearing masks and washing your hands frequently. Free COVID-19 testing will be done Thursday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. for Ravalli County residents at the Hamilton High School parking lot on Fairgrounds Road.

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