Evansville Courier and Press from Evansville, Indiana • A6

SANTA CLAUS, IN Larry Wetzel, age 70, of Santa Claus, Indiana, passed away on October 25, 2020. Larry was born in Dale, IN onMarch 21, 1950, to Bill and Hilda (Simpson) Wetzel. He married the love of his (Held), on July 18, 1970 in St. Church. Larry was a graduate of Dale High School class of 1968.

He umpired in themidwest league from 1977 to 1979. He went on to umpire countless high school, legion, and college baseball games. He was awarded the Baseball Official of the Year in the state of Indiana in 2006 by the National Federation of High School Officials Association. He was an active member of St. Church.

Larry was a truck for over 20 years. Larry enjoyed spending timewith his grand- kids, watching baseball, and attending sporting events with friends. Surviving are his wife of 50 years Mary Ann Wetzel; Two sons, John (Lisa)Wetzel, Brent (Erica) Wetzel; Grandchildren, Emma, Abby, Ella, and Will Wetzel; Mother HildaWetzel; Four siblings, Shirley Ricklefs, Sandy (Mike) Tempel, Gary (Carla) Wetzel, and Barb (John) McBride plus many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his father Bill Wetzel. Funeral Services are planned for 2 PM CST ThursdayOctober 29, at St.

Church, Lamar, with burial to follow in the church cemetery. A visitation will be held from 10 AM CST till service time at church on Thursday. Memorial contributionsmay bemade to St. Pe- Church Cemetery Fund, Lange-Fuhs Cancer Center, or Heart to Heart Hospice. Fuller Funeral Home is handling arrangements.

www.fullersfh.com Larry Wetzel OBITUARIES 6A TUESDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2020 EVANSVILLE COURIER PRESS K1 INDIANA Health care workers and the most vulnerable will get dibs on a vaccine for COVID-19 once one or more of the treatments receive government approval, according to plan for vaccine distribution. Such approval could come as early as the end of the year, federal said Wednesday afternoon at a press is hope on the way in form of a safe and ef- fective vaccine in a matter of weeks or Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that the country might see one or possibly two vaccines approved before the end of the year. Companies with vaccines in trials have started manufacturing their products so they are poised to start distribution if the coming weeks and months prove the and safety and win gov- ernment approval. By the end of January there should be enough vac- cine for every senior and health care worker, Azar said.

By March to early April, supplies should be for anyone who wants it to get the vaccine. Indiana state health say they will prioritize people who work in health care settings with exposure to patients as well as those at greatest risk from the disease. These settings include at hospitals, long- term care facilities, pharmacies and dialysis centers. Other priority workers would include paramedics and home health Next, the state will deliver vaccine to those in con- gregate living settings, such as prisons, group homes, and shelters as well as essential workers. Finally, the state will vaccine to the general public, according to the 75-page draft of a plan that the state Health Department has posted on its website.

Hospitals, local health departments and commer- cial pharmacies will play key roles in providing vacci- nations in the early stages. Indiana National Guard medics will help with the mass immunization plan as will emergency medical service providers in a pilot partnership with the state. The Indiana Department of Health also will play a role in the later phases, setting up strike teams that will go to areas seeing outbreaks to try to mitigate the spread. In addition, the state will use 10 mobile vans, equipped with cold storage, that will be spread through the state for vaccinating 80 to 100 people a day. Distributing the vaccine will not necessarily be easy.

Some of the vaccine products will need to be maintained at ultra-cold temperatures of around mi- nus 80 degrees Celsius. Most people will require two doses of the same vaccine 21 days apart. But what might prove most could be per- suading people that the vaccine is safe. Wednesday Azar said that safety is of the utmost concern both for his agency and the companies testing the vaccines. Before a vaccine can be ap- proved it must go through checkpoints that in- volve drug companies, the federal government and an independent data and safety monitoring board, he said.

Supporting this, Azar noted that two of the com- panies have put their trials on hold because of safe- ty concerns. A third company Eli Lilly and where Azar worked earlier in his career has halted the trial of a potential treatment because of safety concerns. system is working. This is being played by the he said. American people should feel very reassured by the process established here.

Who in Indiana will get COVID vaccine A shot is prepared as part of a possible COVID-19 vaccine developed by the National Institutes of Health and Moderna Inc. in Binghamton N.Y. HANS PENNINK Shari Rudavsky Indianapolis Star USA TODAY NETWORK future, the mayor will have to get council approval. I believe this action strengthens our Representative Republic and it safeguards our a circumstance where state statute and Evans- ville city code appear to Marco DeLucio, an attorney for the Winnecke ad- ministration, noted a section of city code stating the mayor may extend an emergency order last more than seven and it does not mention the need for any other approval. Based on that, Winnecke believes he may unilat- erally extend the executive order on gatherings, according to DeLucio and a spokesperson for the Joshua Claybourn, Evansville City Council attor- ney, said he does not believe a city code trumps state statute.

Claybourn said not aware of any City Council to stop an extension of executive order but rather ensure the correct process is fol- lowed. think any intention of undermining or second-guessing that, I think about making sure the City role is now and in the future. a procedural Claybourn said. Elpers agreed, noting controversies have arisen across the country about local and state rules stem- ming from growing COVID-19 cases. Elpers predicted the City Council on Monday night would have a brief discussion about exec- utive order and take a voice vote in support of extend- ing it.

a good check and balance going El- pers said. think council and the administration have a good relationship, but you look around at other may- ors and states doing really crazy things, shutting down businesses, economies and so DeLucio said his view that city code gives Win- necke full authority to extend his own executive order, but the other hand, if (City Council) wants to jump in the fray and lend their support, I have a prob- lem with Coronavirus continues to spread rapidly in Vander- burgh County and throughout the region, taxing local health care facilities and resources. Winnecke has said his executive order on large gatherings will likely be renewed until local COVID-19 cases are under control. Health say transmission of the virus is more likely in such gatherings, which is why Win- executive order requires anyone planning an event of at least 125 people to show the Vanderburgh County Health Department a health and safety plan. The rule applies only within the Evansville city lim- its.

Here is a link to the necessary form: vanderburgh- health. Order Continued from Page 1A Indiana for the consecutive day reported more than 2,000 new cases of the coronavirus Mon- day. The 2,009 additional cases of coronavirus bring the state's total to 164,581 cases since the start of the pandemic. The state also reported an additional 13 deaths, bringing that total to 3,907. An additional 236 people are thought to have died of coronavirus but did not have a test that they were infected.

Each Monday the state updates the number of new cases in schools as well. Monday the state re- ported 639 new students, 135 new teacher cases and 141 new cases. That brings the total number of cases in schools to 3,507 in students, 719 in faculty and 801 in Hospitals across the state continue to see num- bers of COVID patients comparable to what they were handling in the weeks of the pandemic. Over the weekend the number of hospitalized pa- tients with COVID exceeded 1,600 for the time since mid-April. The percentage of intensive care unit beds occu- pied by patients with COVID also reached levels not seen since the few weeks of the pandemic.

Four out of the metrics over time that the Re- genstrief Institute uses to track the pandemic are red, or on the increase: the number of positive tests, the number of emergency room visits, the number of hos- pital admissions, and the number of intensive care unit admissions. Deaths, however, are on the decline. Here are some other statistics of note: How many people in Indiana hospitals with CO- VID-19: 1,634. Intensive care unit bed availability: 32.8% of 2,161 beds. 23.1% of beds are occupied by COVID pa- tients.

Ventilator availability: 77.8% of 2,832. State positivity rates (seven-day average rate as of Oct. 19): For all tests performed, 6.9%. For unique individuals, 13.3%. Average number of deaths a day as of Oct.

19: 23. Regenstrief Institute estimate of how many peo- ple are currently infected: 30,528. Counties with more than 50 newly reported cases: Lake (219), Marion (185), Allen (97), Elkhart (117), Vanderburgh (84), St. Joseph (76), Hamilton (68), Porter (59), Hendricks (51), Tippecanoe (51). Counties with more than 20 newly reported cases: Johnson (47), Wayne (41), Delaware (40), Ad- ams (37), Warrick (35), Clark (31), LaPorte (31), Vigo (30), Fayette (30), Madison (27), Kosciusko (27), Grant (26), Monroe (25), Jackson (25), Jasper (24), Marshall (23), Lawrence (21), Clinton (21).

2,009 new virus cases, 13 deaths reported in state Shari Rudavsky Indianapolis Star USA TODAY NETWORK EVANSVILLE Showplace Cinemas South has closed its doors. The Showplace signage has been stripped from the outside of the building at 950 South Hebron Ave- nue. News of the closure follows months of disruptions to the movie theater industry due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The initial shutdown required movie theaters to be closed, and once they reopened, capacity was limited as a safety precaution. The limited number of guests coupled with delays to much-anticipated releases was a blow to the indus- try causing many to shut back down again on their own terms.

Currently, the only operating theater among the Showplace Cinemas chain is the one on the East Side located at 1801 Morgan Center Drive. The theater is currently showing new releases as well as Halloween specials. Showplace Entertainment Center and Burgh House are open as well. Showplace South closes Brook Endale Evansville Courier Press USA TODAY NETWORK.