Governor Steve Bullock on Thursday evening announced the first death in Montana of a COVID-19 patient, and as of Friday morning, there are now 108 confirmed cases in Montana, including a sixth patient in Cascade County.
The location of the death has not yet been released, and no additional information have been disclosed at this point. Public health officials are in the process of contacting family members, according to Bullock.
Bullock on Thursday afternoon issued a directive requiring Montanans to stay home and temporarily closes all nonessential businesses and operations as efforts to curtail the spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus) continue. The order goes into effect at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, March 28. Click here for complete details .
The order will be in effect through Friday, April 10, and requires all businesses and operations in Montana, except for essential businesses and operations as defined in the directive, to stop all activities within the state. The Directive also prohibits all public and private gatherings of any number of people occurring outside a household or place of residence.
Employees who are not sure if they are considered essential should talk with their manager/business owner. Business owners with questions can call at 1-800-755-6672 and leave messages 24-hours a day and will receive a prompt response, according to Bullock.
The order does not prohibit restaurants from continuing to offer take-out, curb-side, and delivery service. Click here for a list of Great Falls restaurants offering such service .
*CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL TEXT OF THE DIRECTIVE*
In addition to the state-wide order referenced above, Cascade County Health Officer Trisha Gardner on Thursday said that her initial public health order of March 20th has been extended in the county through 11:59 p.m. on April 10th. The order now includes salons, tattoo parlors, and several other types of business that are now closed to "ingress, egrees, use, and occupancy by members of the public." The order includes the following:
- all body art, tattoo, and piercing establishments
- all hair, nail, and cosmetic salons/studios
- all hair, nail, and cosmetic schools/training facilities
- all spa and massage services, except those massage services contained within state-licenses physical therapy or chiropractic services
As of Friday morning (March 27), there are 108 confirmed cases of COVID-19 (coronavirus) in Montana.
Here is a list of counties that have reported at least two confirmed cases: Gallatin 39; Yellowstone 20; Missoula 8; Butte-Silver Bow 8; Lewis & Clark 8; Flathead 6; Cascade 6; Madison 2; Broadwater 2; Toole 2.
Officials in Montana are keeping a list of confirmed cases in the Treasure State on an updated map and website - click here to visit the site .
There have now been seven hospitalizations of COVID-19 patients in Montana, according to the state Coronavirus Task Force . The DPHHS public health lab in Helena has completed more than 2,680 tests for COVID-19.
