Dayton Channell, age 6 from Raymond, spent part of Memorial Day Weekend cleaning and decorating veterans graves at Fern Hill in Menlo.

With Pacific County beach access reopened on Monday, May 18, the question of when are hotels and camping reopening pops up. The desire to get out and go to the beach is building with people still restricted to their homes, and Pacific County is preparing for the visitors that will not be able to resist the drive to the beach.

Pacific County Deputy Health Officer Dr. Steven Krager and the Emergency Operations Center have been working on a phased reopening of the county that aligns with the state's reopening plan. The plan calls for entering phase 2 starting June 1 along with the rest of Washington, but Pacific County has been officially moved to phase 2 on Saturday May 23.

Borden's Auto Parts was vandalized early Sunday morning when someone smashed in several huge windows. Borden's is located at 580 Commercial St. in downtown Raymond.

Raymond Police "responded to an alarm at Borden's and Officer Coma found several windows broken out," Raymond Police Chief Chuck Spoor told the Herald Sunday morning. "She checked the area and located a suspect within a block of the incident.

Last week, Governor Jay Inslee announced a statewide plan for contact tracing.

SOUTH BEND - Pacific County Commissioner Lisa Olsen and Kittitas County Commissioner Laura Osiadacz drafted a detailed letter to Governor Jay Inslee that was sent last Tuesday (May 12) and signed onto by 19 counties, including Pacific County.

SOUTH BEND - As if coronavirus isn't bad enough, now Washington residents in Blaine have to be wary of Asian giant hornets, which were spotted there in December, for the first time in the USA, and again earlier this month, according to scientists, who aren't sure how they arrived in The Evergreen State.

Five new COVID-19 confirmed positive cases were announced late Monday, May 4, 2020. This brings the total of cases for Pacific County up to nine.

The ill individuals are self-isolating at home. Close contacts are being informed by public health nurses of the exposure and instructions to self-quarantine.

Les and Vivian Edersheim's Lhasa Apso Suzie-Q helped thank caregivers at the Willapa Harbor Care Center on Mother's Day when a caravan of approximately 50 or 60 cars passed through the driveway three times.

The Department of Commerce has awarded Pacific County a Community Development Block Grant of $29,000 to assist Pacific County residents who need financial assistance.

The focus of this money is to help households where employment has been negatively impacted by COVID-19 with layoffs or reduced hours. These funds are intended to go to household bills like rent, mortgage, or utility payments where the money can be sent directly to the biller.

During two addresses to the state on April 21 and 22, Governor Jay Inslee spoke about the plans that are being developed for reopening Washington. His overarching goals include restarting the local economy and protecting Washingtonians' health.

"One month ago with our state facing stark projections of an unmitigated public health and economic disaster, with the support of the legislature, my office took decisive action to save our friends and our families from that fate," said Inslee.