County Holds Memorial Ceremony For COVID Victims

By Michael Lyle, the Nevada Current

January 20, 2021

Sixty-nine-year-old Daniel Scully became Clark County’s first reported Covid-19 death March 15, just days after the state announced its first coronavirus cases.

As of Tuesday, 2,873 people in Clark County have died from Covid.

“Ten months later, here we are. I don’t think any of us thought we were going to be here 10 months later,” said Clark County Chair Marilyn Kirkpatrick during a day of remembrance Tuesday. “I know we have worked hard and we will continue to work hard as a community to help us get through this.”

The Presidential Inauguration Committee asked communities to participate in a national moment of unity and remembrance.

“To heal, we must remember. It’s hard sometimes to remember, but that’s why we heal,” Biden said Tuesday during his brief remarks at the National Mall. “It’s important to do that as a nation.”

Tuesday’s memorial took place as the United States surpasses 400,000 deaths in less than a year. Nevada’s overall death toll from the pandemic reached 3,793 on Tuesday.

“There are some who may suggest it’s too soon to do a remembrance, but I disagree and suspect the families of those who have died would also disagree,” said County Commissioner Jim Gibson. “I believe they would like us to remember their lost ones, do it in a meaningful way, not forget and most importantly band together and commit ourselves to whatever it takes to overcome the issues that face us with the raging virus.”

County commissioners watched as 30 beams of light lit the rotunda inside the government building, each one representing 100 people who’ve died.

“We want to take this time to honor what was sacrificed during Covid-19 in our community,” Kirkpatrick said. “Each time someone passes, it leaves a hole within our hearts.”

The City of Las Vegas also illuminated gateway arches on Las Vegas Boulevard and festoon lights on Main Street.

While the commissioners hoped the rising deaths along with the first official day of remembrance would encourage people to wear masks, get vaccinated when it’s time and take the pandemic seriously, Gibson said whether it actually does “remains to be seen.”

“I’m hoping to see people taking responsibility for their own actions and accepting some responsibility we each owe to our neighbor,” Gibson said. “My hope is we would change our habits to slow down the spread while we get vaccinated.”

He added the state’s economy is dependent not only on people getting vaccinated but continuing to wear masks and follow public health guidelines in the meantime.

“What can we do to reinvigorate and turn on this economy again?” Gibson asked. “How are we going to preserve the lives, the jobs and the families of those who are dependent upon employment that doesn’t exist today? The only way we’re going to get there is by saying to ourselves, ‘I got to do my part.’ My part has got to be following the advice that has been given by health experts and getting ourselves vaccinated.”

Despite distribution beginning in December, the national vaccine rollout has been slower than expected. In his speech Jan. 14 announcing his economic rescue plan, Biden proposed $20 billion in new money for vaccine distribution efforts.

Gibson said larger vaccine distribution has to be a high priority.

“It has to happen,” he said. “We can’t take a year or a year and a half to get vaccinated in this valley. The state needs the vaccine in a big way now. Our economy is suffering more than almost any other jurisdiction primarily because of the nature of our primary industry.”

This story was originally published by the Nevada Current. For more stories from the Nevada Current, visit NevadaCurrent.com.