This email newsletter is the official guidance from the City of Big Bear Lake, and the City appreciates everyone's adherence to the guidance outlined herein. This email newsletter also serves as the City's official press release regarding the City's COVID-19 response, and press inquiries may be directed to City Manager Frank Rush at 909-866-5832 or via email.

The City issues these COVID-19 updates weekly on Tuesdays, and also as otherwise warranted as significant or new information emerges. To be sure you are receiving the latest and most accurate information, please sign up for this email newsletter by clicking here . PLEASE share this email newsletter with anyone and everyone, as we want to reach as many people as possible with this information. Thank you!

Due to expected snow this week, and the difficulty in mobilizing their team from down the mountain, the County has postponed the planned January 21 testing event at Big Bear City Hall. The event has been postponed to Thursday, January 28, and the County expects to open the appointment portal very soon. To make a new appointment for testing, please click here . We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience, and encourage all those in need of a test to consider other testing locations, including CVS, Bear Valley Community Hospital, or another County testing site off the mountain.

In addition to the planned testing event on Thursday, January 28, the City will also host testing events at City Hall on Tuesday, February 9 and Tuesday, February 23. Each of these testing events will be expanded to 6 hours, and will operate from 9 am to 3 pm. The expanded testing hours will enable us to conduct approximately 500 tests each day.

Consistent with recent State adjustments, San Bernardino County has now opened vaccination clinics to all individuals age 65 and over. The County is currently offering vaccines to all individuals in Phase 1A - Tiers 1, 2, and 3 .

Unfortunately, due to a variety of circumstances mostly at the Federal and State levels, the availability of COVID-19 vaccines is very limited right now. San Bernardino County officials are working diligently to expand the available supply for our residents, and hope to dramatically increase the number of vaccinations as soon as possible. At this time, demand simply far outpaces supply.

San Bernardino County, area hospitals, and select pharmacies are currently offering vaccinations at several locations throughout the County. To view vaccination locations and make an appointment, please visit this website. At this time, it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to secure an appointment for a vaccination, however, we are hopeful additional slots will be added very soon as additional supplies are delivered. Big Bear residents are encouraged to continue monitoring availability at this website.

The City continues to work closely with San Bernardino County officials, and plans are being developed now for the City to host daily vaccination clinics at the Big Bear Lake City Hall as soon as vaccine supplies become available. Dates will be announced as the details are finalized.

Because of the many similarities, the Big Bear Valley is often compared to Mammoth Lakes and South Tahoe. All three communities are mountain / ski resort communities, all three have similar environmental characteristics, demographics, and development patterns, all three are relatively small communities, and all three are somewhat remote from larger population centers in California.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began in mid-March, the percentage of the permanent population that has contracted COVID-19 in each community is as follows:

Big Bear Valley - 4.41% of the permanent population has contracted COVID-19 since mid-March,

Mammoth Lakes - 8.23% of the permanent population has contracted COVID-19 since mid-March, and

South Tahoe - 6.72% of the permanent population has contracted COVID-19 since mid-March.

Overall, 7.66% of the total population of California has contracted COVID-19 since mid-March. In San Bernardino County, 11.99% of the total population has contracted COVID-19, while 10.14% of the total population of Los Angeles County has contracted COVID-19.

Over just the past 2 weeks, the percentage of the permanent population that has contracted COVID-19 in each community is as follows:

Big Bear Valley - 0.67% of the permanent population has contracted COVID-19 in the last two weeks,

Mammoth Lakes - 1.98% of the permanent population has contracted COVID-19 in the last two weeks, and

South Tahoe - 1.63% of the permanent population has contracted COVID-19 in the last two weeks.

According to the latest data from San Bernardino County, there have now been a cumulative total of 835 confirmed COVID-19 cases since mid-March. Of this total, there have been 292 cases in the City of Big Bear Lake, 456 cases in Big Bear City, 75 cases in Sugarloaf, and 12 cases in Fawnskin.

The City receives Big Bear-specific information from San Bernardino County contact tracers. The most recent report indicates that 788 individuals have recovered, and that there are currently a total of 47 active cases. Official County records indicate 1 confirmed death attributed to COVID-19 in Big Bear.

With an estimated population of 18,941 people in the Big Bear Valley, and 47 currently active cases, approximately 1 in every 403 residents in our community are currently infected.

The State continues to report "adjusted" ICU availability of 0% in the Southern California Region, and these adjusted numbers have been at 0% since December 16. Because this metric remains at 0%, and is not forecast to improve in the near future, the State has extended its current restrictions for the Southern California region for at least another week, and likely longer.

The State applies an adjustment factor to the actual ICU availability in each region that is a function of the percentage of ICU patients receiving care for COVID-19 compared to ICU patients receiving care for other ailments. This adjustment factor is applied when more than 30% of ICU patients are receiving care for COVID-19, and has had the effect of pushing the overall "adjusted ICU availability" down to 0% in the Southern California region in recent weeks.

As of January 18, the actual ICU availability in San Bernardino County hospitals is 8.5%, which is a slight improvement over the past few weeks, and is at least somewhat encouraging. As of January 18, the State is reporting a total of 60 adult ICU beds available in San Bernardino County, and this is the highest availability in our County since December 12. Overall, the State is reporting a total of 1,177 adult ICU beds available Statewide. The Statewide number has remained relatively constant over the last month.

COVID-19 case, death, testing, and hospital data reported by the State of California and San Bernardino County suggests that the current surge may be at a plateau, with hope that conditions will gradually and continually improve in our County.

A few key San Bernardino County data points that provide at least some hope include the following:

It is important to note that the current COVID-19 situation after the post-Thanksgiving surge remains more serious than at any other time since the COVID-19 pandemic began in mid-March, and EVERYONE is encouraged to continue to take all appropriate precautions to keep yourself, your family, and your community safe! We still have a long way to go, but at least there are somewhat encouraging signs over the past few weeks.

Be safe!

The City and Visit Big Bear have partnered on numerous initiatives to keep our community safe and mitigate visitor impacts since mid-March, and recently added 16 additional portable toilets along Big Bear Boulevard between Veterans Park and Interlaken Shopping Center to provide relief for visitors. These additional facilities complement previously installed portable toilets and fixed restroom facilities at City parks and in The Village area.

The City applauds our businesses for their efforts to keep our community safe from COVID-19, and recognizes that many visitors have closed restroom facilities normally utilized by your customers. Because some visitors have not been as respectful as we'd all like, the City strongly encourages all Big Bear Lake businesses to PLEASE KEEP YOUR RESTROOMS OPEN for customer use. With so many business restrooms closed, some visitors have resorted to using any convenient outdoor location. That's obviously not the kind of community we all want, so PLEASE help us address this concern!

With COVID-19 still a serious threat and hospital capacity still severely strained, we need EVERYONE to take appropriate health and safety precautions to keep our community safe. It's not asking too much for you to simply do all the right things outlined below:

The easiest way to stay-informed is to sign up for the City's email newsletter and other updates. It's easy to sign up - simply visit the City's website and click on "Text & Email Notifications" in the top center of the homepage. Simply click on the link, enter your name and email address, and you're all set. Signing up will ensure that you receive periodic updates about COVID-19 in Big Bear Lake, the City's new monthly newsletter - Elevation 6752', and other special communications from the City of Big Bear Lake for emergency situations, special events, and more.