| Emergency Information for Residents |
| COVID 19 in Newaygo County |
We have all been reading about this for months, but it's a good reminder. Patients with confirmed infection have reportedly had mild to severe respiratory illness with symptoms of:
- Fever
- Cough
- Shortness of breath
The best prevention for viruses, such as influenza, the common cold or COVID-19 is to:
- If you think you have been exposed to COVID-19, call your health care provider. If you do not have a health care provider, call the nearest hospital.
- Wash your hands often with soap and warm water for 20 seconds. If not available, use hand sanitizer.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands.
- Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or upper sleeve when coughing or sneezing.
- Avoid contact with people who are sick.
- If you are sick, stay home, and avoid contact with others.
- Stay at least 6 feet away from others when in a public setting.
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If you are in immediate need of a police officer call Newaygo County Dispatch at 231-689-5288, this will reach the nearest available police officer. If it is a life threatening emergency dial 911.
Utilize our drop box, online payment systems and mail to make bill payments. Click here to pay bills online.
If you avoid going out but need to come in to City Hall, please feel free to call ahead to make an appointment and we will be happy to schedule a time.
To register to receive free text and email alerts from Newaygo County Emergency Services, text NewaygoES to 888777 or visit https://local.nixle.com/register/.
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| Food Support - Check with each of these organizations directly for updates |
TrueNorth Community Services will offer curb-side pick up at their food pantry located at 6308 S. Warner Avenue in Fremont, from 8:30am-4:30pm daily.
Bailey Christian Church is offering free breakfast and/or lunch to children and families. Please feel free to contact the BCC office at 231.834.5919 or baileychristianchurch@gmail.com.
Newaygo County Commission on Aging offers meal delivery to seniors who qualify. Call 231-689-2100 for more information.
Gene’s Grocery will be offering free curbside assistance and delivery for seniors. Please call 231-834-5784 to place an order.
Dollar General and Family Dollar will both open exclusively to seniors for shopping between the hours of 8-9am.
Grant Public Schools will be providing breakfast and lunch for families to pick up at multiple locations throughout our district between the hours of 11:00 AM and 12:00 noon. The meals will be provided for any child ages 0-18, or up to age 26 for young adults with special needs.
The meals will be for pick-up only (Grab and Go). Those locations are:
- Grant Middle School South Parking Lot located at 96 East 120th St. in Grant
- Bailey Christian Church Parking Lot located at 17635 Pearl St. in Bailey
- Bridgeton Township Hall Parking Lot located at 11830 Warner Ave. in Grant
- Lake Forest Mobile Home Park Clubhouse/Office Building Parking Lot located at 9502 South 2nd St.
- Blythefield Hills Baptist Church Parking Lot located at 7077 E. 120th St.
Mobile Pantry:
The Vine an Assembly of God Church 112 Commerce Grant, MI 49327
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| Local Health Care Providers |
Newaygo Commission on Aging offers transportation for seniors who have medical appointments. They will continue to offer transportation at this time. Call 231-689-2100 for more information.
Family Healthcare implementing a pharmacy curbside pick-up service back in the spring. Please call pharmacy staff if you need refills or have a prescription to pick-up. At this time, only customers who are in the building after an office visit with a Family Health Care provider, including a dental or mental health provider, will be granted access to the pharmacy. Please feel free to contact your Family Health Care Pharmacy staff for more information during regular business hours. https://www.familyhealthcare.org/covid19/
Spectrum Health Gerber Memorial
Visitor Restrictions may be in effect: The hospital has made revisions to their visitor policies to align with 2020 Executive Orders. We encourage you to contact each location to confirm their current policies. This includes outpatient rehabilitation in Fremont (231.924.3195) and in Newaygo (231.652.5079).
For questions about non-urgent outpatient diagnostic exams, including mammograms, MRIs, CT scans, walk-in X-rays and other services, please call 231.924.1365.
Hospital Entrances: In an effort to better screen visitors during the coronavirus pandemic, Spectrum Health Gerber Memorial is keeping only a few entrances open for staff, patients and visitors. Other entrances are open for a limited period during the day, Monday through Friday, and can be accessed only with a valid employee badge and appropriate COVID-19 risk factor screening.
All other entrances will be locked. Designated parking areas will not be affected: Visitor lots will remain for patients and visitors, and employees will still park in employee lots.
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| Unemployment & Small Business Info |
- Eligible employees should apply for unemployment benefits online at Michigan.gov/UIA or 1-866-500-0017. A factsheet on how to apply for benefits can be found here.
The Michigan Economic Development Corporation’s (MEDC) call center stands ready to support businesses looking for assistance through other available state programs. For more information, visit MEDC’s website: www.michiganbusiness.org or call 888.522.0103. The Michigan Small Business Development Center can also provide resources for small businesses impacted by COVID-19. Visit their website https://sbdcmichigan.org/small-business-covid19/ for additional information.
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| District, Probate, Circuit Courts of Newaygo County |
NEWAYGO COUNTY – The public is encouraged to visit countyofnewaygo.com or call ahead with questions.
Phone: (231) 689-7251 Main Phone: (231) 689-7252 Fax: (231) 689-7015
District Court Email: dmr@co.newaygo.mi.us
Phone: (231) 689-7228 Main Phone: (231) 689-7257 Fax (231) 689-7258
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Newaygo County Community, Michigan Attorney General Nessel has sent warnings out about the current scams taking place in Michigan or neighboring states.
Report potential scams and price gougingThose who wish to make a report about potential scams, price-gouging and any other violation of the Michigan Consumer Protection Act can do so with the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection team by filing a complaint online or by calling 877-765-8388. The phonelines are usually open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Hours were extended earlier this week to keep up with demand and will be extended again from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. 3/19/2020 - Scammers are Spoofing Health Department Phone Numbers Seeking Medicaid/Medicare InformationScammers are spoofing phone numbers of at least one local public health department and calling residents to offer medication while asking for their Medicaid and Medicare numbers for billing purposes. Incoming calls to the local health department are then jamming up phone lines and delaying official business in responding to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). To seem more official, scammers often use a process known as “spoofing” – when a call appears to be coming from a legitimate government phone number. The caller may also sound professional and be very persuasive. Anyone who receives a phone call they suspect to be a scam should hang up the phone. No one should give out personal information to an unsolicited caller. 03/18/2020 – Red Cross Impersonators in neighboring statesThe Red Cross has been receiving reports in several states, including the latest in Lowell, IN area that impersonators are posing as Red Cross personnel. Individuals are going house to house doing one of three things: 1) Attempting to sell Red Cross services to perform a COVID-19 test2) Solicit donations for COVID-193) Robbing the homeowner answering the doorThe American Red Cross will not be going house to house offering COVID-19 testing, nor soliciting funds door to door. Indiana State Police is verifying the report in Lowell, IN.3/17/2020 - Online scams selling fake COVID-19 Tests and TreatmentsResidents should also be aware of online coronavirus scams selling bogus products and providing false information on COVID-19 tests and treatments. These attempts to obtain the personal information of consumers may include emails or online posts pitching unreliable products, advice, fake tests and cures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Scams related to COVID-19 are climbing with the continued confirmations of positive COVID-19 cases in the United States. These attempts to obtain the personal information of consumers include online posts pitching unreliable products, advice, fake tests and cures to prevent the spread of COVID-19.Additionally, online offers are selling masks – that reportedly are not being delivered – to consumers while using misleading language to convince them to purchase. The CDC has repeatedly warned that wearing a mask does not protect people who do not have the virus from getting COVID-19.Nessel also warns Michigan residents that misinformation about COVID-19 symptoms and treatment falsely attributed to a “Stanford Hospital board member” is being widely circulated on social media.3/17/2020 - Price GougingAttorney General Nessel’s office had received 572 price-gouging complaints as of 11 p.m. Tuesday, March 17, 2020. Under Executive Order 2020-008, a person must not offer for sale or sell any product in this state at a price that is more than 20% higher than what the person offered or charged for that product as of March 9, 2020, unless the person demonstrates that the price increase is attributable to an increase in the cost of bringing the product to market. The Attorney General’s Consumer Protection team has been gathering the complaints online and through its phonelines at 877-765-8388.10 Things You Can Do To Avoid FraudThe following information are recommendations from the Federal Trade Commission.
- Spot imposters. Scammers often pretend to be someone you trust, like a government official, a family member, a charity, or a company you do business with. Don’t send money or give out personal information in response to an unexpected request — whether it comes as a text, a phone call, or an email.
- Do online searches. Type a company or product name into your favorite search engine with words like “review,” “complaint” or “scam.” Or search for a phrase that describes your situation, like “IRS call.” You can even search for phone numbers to see if other people have reported them as scams.
- Don’t believe your caller ID. Technology makes it easy for scammers to fake caller ID information, so the name and number you see aren’t always real. If someone calls asking for money or personal information, hang up. If you think the caller might be telling the truth, call back to a number you know is genuine.
- Don’t pay upfront for a promise. Someone might ask you to pay in advance for things like debt relief, credit and loan offers, mortgage assistance, or a job. They might even say you’ve won a prize, but first you have to pay taxes or fees. If you do, they will probably take the money and disappear.
- Consider how you pay. Credit cards have significant fraud protection built in, but some payment methods don’t. Wiring money through services like Western Union or MoneyGram is risky because it’s nearly impossible to get your money back. That’s also true for reloadable cards (like MoneyPak or Reloadit) and gift cards (like iTunes or Google Play). Government offices and honest companies won’t require you to use these payment methods.
- Talk to someone. Before you give up your money or personal information, talk to someone you trust. Con artists want you to make decisions in a hurry. They might even threaten you. Slow down, check out the story, do an online search, consult an expert — or just tell a friend.
- Hang up on robocalls. If you answer the phone and hear a recorded sales pitch, hang up and report it to the FTC. These calls are illegal, and often the products are bogus. Don’t press 1 to speak to a person or to be taken off the list. That could lead to more calls.
- Be skeptical about free trial offers. Some companies use free trials to sign you up for products and bill you every month until you cancel. Before you agree to a free trial, research the company and read the cancellation policy. And always review your monthly statements for charges you don’t recognize.
- Don’t deposit a check and wire money back. By law, banks must make funds from deposited checks available within days, but uncovering a fake check can take weeks. If a check you deposit turns out to be a fake, you’re responsible for repaying the bank.
- Sign up for free scam alerts from the FTC at ftc.gov/scams. Get the latest tips and advice about scams sent right to your inbox.
If you spot a scam, report it at ftc.gov/complaint. Your reports help the FTC and other law enforcement investigate scams and bring crooks to justice. COMMUNITY INFORMATION
- ONLY CALL 9-1-1 TO REPORT EMERGENCIES! Emergency operators and phone lines are needed to support this incident, please continue to monitor Nixle for updates or call 2-1-1 (not 9-1-1) for general safety information.
- DO NOT GO TO THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT FOR TESTING! Please DO NOT show up at an emergency department or urgent care center unless it is a life threatening emergency and you need immediate medical care. Anyone with severe or life-threatening symptoms should call 911.
- VIRTUAL SCREENING FOR COVID-19 IS AVAILABLE BY CALLING 616.391.2380! Spectrum Health is offering free virtual COVID-19 screenings to those who have symptoms and may be concerned they have the virus. The purpose is to prevent the spread of illness by enabling people to seek the information they need from their homes, while making it easy and convenient for them.
- ADDITIONAL INFORMATION WILL BE RELEASED! Continue monitoring your radio, Nixle, and Newaygo ES’s Facebook Page for additional information.
- THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION!
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