PENDLETON — Leaders from the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation met with Umatilla County Commissioners and other county officials on Wednesday, Dec. 16, to discuss the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Thorn Hollow Bridge and how local communities are jointly planning for the upcoming flood season.

The meeting began with updates from tribal officials who confirmed that Yellowhawk Tribal Health Center will be receiving the first 300 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine on Thursday, Dec. 17. Inoculations of health care staff, frontline first responders and Yellowhawk patients over the age of 75 will begin on Saturday, Dec. 19, and Sunday, Dec. 20, according to tribal officials.

The vaccines, which are being distributed by the Indian Health Service and shipped from the Lummi Nation, must be kept in a deep freeze, and because of the transportation, the vaccines will begin to defrost Friday, Dec. 18, Chuck Sams, the deputy director of the CTUIR, said in the meeting. That means all vaccinations must be completed by Monday, Dec. 21, or they will expire, Sams said.

“Yellowhawk staff are working hard to protect the CTUIR community and now they are starting to get health care employees and elders vaccinated. We greatly appreciate their concerted efforts,” CTUIR Board of Trustees Chair Kat Brigham said in a press release on Tuesday, Dec. 15.

“But let me be clear. Just because the first vaccine shipment is coming in, the war with this invisible enemy is not over. There is no silver bullet. We must continue social distancing so we can knock down the numbers before they get worse.”

Joe Fiumara, Umatilla County’s public health director, said the county has yet to receive any vaccines. He added that “things are still fluid,” and the department is hoping to see local hospitals receive their first shipments on either Dec. 21 or Tuesday, Dec. 22.

The first Oregon health care workers were vaccinated Dec. 16 against COVID-19 at Legacy Emanuel Medical Center in North Portland, making the state the 49th in the country to do so after receiving its first shipments on Monday, Dec. 14. At least 3 million Oregonians are planned to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in the next six to nine months, with the Moderna vaccine also expected to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

The vaccine is a two-step process, and after receiving the first dose, Oregonians can expect to make a second appointment to receive a final dose 21 days later.

Yellowhawk officials said in the Dec. 15 press release it is expecting weekly shipments to begin January 2021, although it added that the demand for the vaccine is high and the Indian Health Service will ultimately determine when doses will be distributed.

Seeking additional funding for Thorn Hollow Bridge

Also on the agenda for the Dec. 16 meeting was the discussion of the Thorn Hollow Bridge, which was left impassable by the raging waters that flooded the Umatilla Indian Reservation and Umatilla County in February.

Officials from Umatilla County and CTUIR decided in the meeting that they would jointly send a message to the Northwest Congressional delegation, Gov. Kate Brown’s office and Oregon lawmakers for additional funding and support.

Tom Fellows, the county’s public works director, said the county has made little progress on the bridge because it does not qualify for federal highways funding. He added that the county has yet to reach an agreement with the Oregon Department of Transportation.

“I can’t tell you when I’m going to expect that. I’ll expect it when I see it come across my desk,” he said.

County Commissioner Murdock said he has reached out “a number of times” to Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden’s office seeking assistance on the bridge, but he has not received a response. So, he proposed in the meeting the joint message between the county and tribal leadership.

Attaining funding and support becomes especially dire as the CTUIR and county prepares for flood season. Chuck Sams said the tribe is still waiting to receive relief from the Federal Emergency Management Agency from 2019.

Fellows also said he doesn’t know when the county can expect funding from FEMA for past flooding either.

“Honestly, we haven’t even scratched the surface of the paperwork yet,” he said. “We can’t seem to get through their maze of paperwork and requests to even start thinking about getting a bill into them for anything. It’s pretty much an insane operation to deal with.”

Fellows said there are 10 projects the county is approaching in regards to the floods.

Umatilla tribal leader Jeremy Wolf encouraged another joint effort between county and tribal leadership to seek financial support from outside organizations. Officials are planning to hold more meetings in the next few months with the city of Pendleton and other organizations to plan efforts toward flood mitigation.