Good morning southern Colorado and here's what you need to know on your Monday, April 19.
If you'd like to read the full story, be sure to click on the story headline.
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Dr. Moma vaccine patients say they’re learning more from the news and Facebook than CDPHE officials
It’s been more than a week since patients vaccinated at the Dr. Moma clinic in Colorado Springs learned the state was stepping in and halting vaccinations there due to what it says was improper storage. But since then, some of those patients tell News 5 the state has been less than transparent with them.
“There’s a significant lack of information, and it’s really hard to connect the dots when you’re not given any dots to connect,” said Darcie Hannigan, who received her first COVID-19 vaccine dose at the Dr. Moma Clinic.
On Tuesday, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment announced “the provider failed to provide proper documentation of temperature storage,” and the nearly 4000 patients who got a vaccine at the clinic would need to get it again.
Dr. Moma (Sylvienash Moma, DNP) says she will be holding a press conference Monday afternoon at her clinic, where she says she will give access to the areas she claims vaccines were stored, and refute some of the claims made against her. News 5 will be there to bring you the latest.
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Get your latest First Alert 5 Weather forecast
The weather is going to be very active today, and there's still going to be room for showers and even a bit more snow at times this week. We'll start nice today with sunshine and lighter winds, even temperatures that feel nice during the daytime.
A cold front will hit us late today and behind the front, we'll see areas of rain briefly, but mostly snow. The front will bring 30 to 40 mph gusts along the plains, and blowing dust east of I-25 could be a large issue along the front.
Snow will pile up quickly in northern El Paso County and the Palmer Divide today, but snow will be widespread enough to accumulate down our southern mountains and into some of the southern I-25 corridor.
We'll see the snow subside overnight and die off by Tuesday morning to only a few remaining flurries. Temperatures will be in the 50s and 60s on Monday and 30s and 40s Tuesday.
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Closing arguments in Derek Chauvin trial
Both the prosecution and defense rested their cases Thursday after wrapping up their witness testimony in the trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer charged with the murder of George Floyd.
Next, both sides will deliver their closing arguments on Monday. After that, the jury will be sequestered as they deliberate whether to find Chauvin guilty in Floyd’s death.
Throughout the trial, prosecutors have alleged that Floyd’s death was directly caused by Chauvin’s decision to kneel on Floyd’s neck and shoulder for more than eight minutes. State-called medical experts have testified that Floyd suffered a heart attack due to a lack of oxygen in his body.
Defense lawyers have attempted to paint a picture that shows other forces outside of the viral nine-minute bystander video that fueled months of protest last summer were at work in Floyd's death. They point to Floyd’s drug use as a potential cause of death and have called witnesses that have justified Chauvin’s use of force.
Chauvin is charged with second- and third-degree murder in connection with Floyd's death.
Watch coverage of the trial on CourtTV.
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Learning high demand skills for high paying jobs
Americans celebrated the hard and sometimes dangerous work of the men and women who keep the nation's electric grid work Sunday on National Lineworker Appreciation Day.
This week, News 5 met up with the staff and students who are preparing for careers in this field at the Rocky Mountain Linemen School in El Paso County.
Alexander Martinez lives in Denver and makes the trip to Colorado Springs Utilities Pinello Ranch training facility near Fountain each day. He is one of 31 students expected to graduate from the school at the end of the month.
Lead instructor Kelly McGillivray said students can expect to earn respectable salaries soon after graduation. It's high-pay for a high-demand job. There's a national shortage of transmission lineworkers.
The job comes with risks. Lineworkers must do their work high off ground, very close to power lines, and usually in poor weather conditions.
The 15-week classes take place in the spring and fall of each year. A one-week break is scheduled at the halfway mark each semester. While linemen school is not a requirement for the job, McGillivray said it does improve your chances of getting hired.
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Statewide COVID-19 dial expired Friday, many counties loosen restrictions
The Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment ended the statewide COVID-19 dial last week and handed over decisions about COVID restrictions to local agencies. Most counties made no changes while others have adjusted their health orders, depending on their number of positive. All of this is subject to change based on statewide conditions.
The color-coded dial framework has been used since September to create a uniform set of rules regarding capacity limits businesses and employers across the state. Click here to see the status of local counties.
CPDHE Chief Medical Officer Dr. Eric France said several factors led to the decision to give more authority to local governments including adequate hospital capacity, increasing vaccination rates, low rates of growth of COVID-19 infection, strong desire from communities to be open, and variation of case rates across counties
But as the dial goes away, we are seeing another rise in cases across the state and hospitalizations. Governor Jared Polis and state health leaders urging everyone to remain vigilant, get vaccinated, wear masks, and maintain social distancing.
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