WAPELLO, Iowa — Louisa County Public Health is out of seasonal flu shots and had about 80 H1N1 vaccines on hand as of Tuesday.

Those H1N1 vaccines are reserved for the at-risk population, which includes people with chronic illness, young children, pregnant women and direct-patient care health care workers.

There are about 3,000 people in the county who fit that description, Alana Poage, Louisa County Public Health administrator, told the Louisa County Board of Supervisors Tuesday during its regular meeting.

“The public has been very understanding,” Poage said. “The minute we have it we will open it up to everybody.”

The same goes for seasonal flu shots. Poage said  people who received seasonal flu shots last year are protected for one year and should still be safe if they are within that time frame. Also, she anticipates by December that the seasonal flu vaccine will be readily available.

Poage added that it’s important for the public to put H1N1 flu into perspective. She said that 1,000 people have died nationwide from H1N1-related symptoms since April but that each year 36,000 people die from seasonal flu symptoms. Seasonal flu typically runs from October through April.

As of Tuesday, the University of Iowa Hygienic Laboratory said no cases of seasonal flu had been reported in the state. The Iowa Public Health Department has decided to stop tracking the H1N1 flu strain by county or by individuals because there are so many cases.

Poage said that persons with flu symptoms at this time likely have H1N1. Local hospitals are not testing for H1N1 and Poage said even if people think they’ve had H1N1 they should get the vaccine when it is available in order to be protected.

In other news

- Bob Schafer of the Wapello Rural Water Advisory Committee told the Board that 42 people have signed up for rural water and the county needs about 900 signatures in order to have 70 percent of the rural population signed up to make it move forward. Plans are in the works for contacting residents and business owners in order to collect the remaining signatures, Schafer said.

- The Board voted unanimously to hire Midwest Consultants to create a contract proposal for a new roof on the Louisa County Courthouse because the existing roof leaks.

Residents need to post a sign or get a fine

WAPELLO, Iowa — Ignoring a county code will prove to be a bad sign — and could be quite costly — for some Louisa County residents.

At Tuesday’s Board meeting, E911 coordinator Carol Nixon said property owners in the county who haven’t gotten their 911 address signs need to do so or face misdemeanor charges and up to $750 in fines. The signs cost $15 and each property owner is required to have one so that emergency responders can more easily find addresses.

Nixon said there are several people who have ignored the code.

Not having the sign not only makes responders’ job more difficult, it could prove to be harmful to residents. Recently, responders were called to a cabin area where signage was not posted and a woman who was performing CPR on a victim had to stop and run outside to flag down an ambulance.

Nixon said it is also important that the grass is trimmed from around the signs so they are visible.

For more information, call 319-523-6466.