Sentara Northern Virginia Medical Center has had one vaping case as the patient.
The unidentified patient was diagnosed with severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS).

• It is a rapidly progressive disease occurring in critically ill patients and had a high mortality rate.

“While there are no guidelines, steroids have been shown to help, if used early,” said Dr. Michael Reitz, at Sentara Northern Virginia Medical Center. “We did initiate steroids treatment early in this case. In addition to steroids, supportive care and very powerful IV antibiotics, along with ventilator management for ARDS, helped with this outcome.”

• The Woodbridge case comes after a Southwest Virginia man died from a vaping-related illness in a Greensboro, N.C. hospital.
• This is the first death related to vaping in Virginia and one of eighteen deaths nationwide.
  It prompted Governor Ralph Northam to consider banning vaping and e-cigarettes. [WSLS]

Speculation over a potential ban has e-cigarette retailers in Prince William County talking.

“All this stuff is not true. People getting sick from e-liquids. It’s the THC cartridges from the black market,” said Shabir Bak, Store Manager of Smoke N Vape. “We know all this stuff, you know, people who work for vape shops. They all know this stuff.”

• Those THC cartridges are used by those seeking a marijuana high.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is still unsure as to what chemical exposure causes these severe lung injuries due to the fact that there is a mix of cases that involve e-cigarette products containing THC and/or nicotine.

• However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recognized a common denominator as vitamin E acetate was found in many of the THC cartridges.
• Also known as tocopheryl-acetate, the oil-based vitamin E may be good for your skin, but isn’t good for your lungs.

“The reality is these THC cartridges are the absolute lack of regulation of what’s being put in them. I’m not saying [cartridges] need to go, I’m saying they need to get regulated,” said Andrew Kosik, manager of Tobacco King of Vape. “People aren’t buying name brand flavors from stores, they’re buying the cheapest flavor they could possibly buy. When we talk about something that could be potentially harmful to your lungs, I’m not sure cheaping out is the way to go.”

Virginia is one of the many states considering a state-wide ban.

• While few states, such as Massachusettes, Michigan, New York, and California have already taken the initiative.
• San Fransisco, however, is the first city to ban the sale of e-cigarettes.

“We know how well prohibition goes in this country,” added Kosik. “We try to be compliant in any manner when it comes to legislation, but there are some things we would try to fight or look to find an amendable solution. I do feel more strongly though for the shops that are literally just vape stores.”

Governor Ralph Northam has already banned the use of tobacco products in schools in March.

• He’s now under pressure from public health organizations, such as the American Heart and Lung Associations and Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, to restrict the sale of flavored tobacco products.

The Prince William Board of County Supervisors on Tuesday approved the funds for the new fire and rescue station.

• The construction of Fire and Rescue Station 22, awarded to V.F. Pavone Construction Company with a $10.25 million bid. 
• The station will be located at 7500 Century Park Drive, off Balls Ford Road.
• The project completion date is May 2021.

The new fire station was set to improve response times in the west end of the County.

Designed by LeMay, Erickson, and Wilcox Architects, the station will be a one-story building of 19,000 square feet, with a pumper, rescue unit, collapse unit, and an Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulance, and complete with sleeping quarters, kitchen, dining area, dayroom, physical fitness room, training room, storage for heavy tactical rescue equipment, and offices.

The new station comes as Prince William officials recently cut the ribbon on another new fire station.

• A newly reconstructed Coles Station 6 (the one shown in the featured photo in this post) is located on Route 234 across from Charles Colgan Jr. Senior High School near Woodbridge.
• It was built next to the old Station 6, which is now set for demolition.

Manassas City is also building its new fire station.

• Fire Station 21 will be located on Dumfries Road near the Prince William Fairgrounds.

Project developer Geoff Pence, President of the Pence Group, declined to comment further about the Garrison’s delay.

• Pence said he wanted to reassure residents that they have a signed lease with multiple businesses that will open in the center, to include Regal Cinemas, Longhorn Steakhouse, and an Olive Garden.
• A Starbucks has also been cleared to also open at the center.

The construction delay is the second in about two years.

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It’s called AWS Educate, and it’s billed as the future of learning the ins and outs of cloud computing in Virginia.

This collaboration between Amazon Web Services (AWS) and the state’s K-12 school divisions, the Virginia Community College System (VCCS), and multiple four-year universities is aimed to create opportunities and build pathways to high-skilled and high-wage cloud computing careers for students in Virginia.

• Northam joined multiple state officials, including Education Secretary Atif Qarni, who taught Civics at Beville Middle School in Dale City before Northam plucked him to head education efforts for the state shortly after he was elected in 2017.
• The announcement was made inside the Workforce Building at the Northern Virginia Community College Woodbridge Campus.

“The first step is to identify what the jobs of the 21st century are,” said Northam. “It’s best we know they’re in areas like cloud computing, cybersecurity, unmanned aerial systems, biotechnology, artificial intelligence, and data collection and analysis.”

Education for cloud computing isn’t new and is available in many online colleges. However, Northern Virginia Community College (NVCC) and George Mason University (GMU) are two of the first higher education institutions in the country to offer cloud computing degrees.

• The programs are seeking to expand into the rest of Virginia’s community colleges and four-year institutions, as well as its high schools, which will give their students the opportunity to receive college credit in cloud computing through dual enrollment.
• It’s unclear how many students are expected to enroll in the program.

“The growing demand for these skills is clear,” said Chief Workforce Development Advisor Megan Healy. “Since September 2016, job postings requiring these skills in Virginia have increased from approximately 5,000 per month to 20,000 per month.”

Among the long list of schools and universities are:

K-12

• Fairfax County Public Schools
• Loudoun County Public Schools
• Alexandria City Public Schools
• Arlington Public Schools

Community Colleges

• Northern Virginia Community College
• J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College
• John Tyler Community College
• Thomas Nelson Community College
• Blue Ridge Community College
• Patrick Henry Community College
• Dabney S. Lancaster Community College
• Tidewater Community College
• New River Community College
• Lord Fairfax Community College

Universities

• George Mason University
• Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
• Virginia Commonwealth University
• Old Dominion University
• Hampton University
• Virginia State University

MANASSAS -- After a year of construction, on July 26, Manassas leaders announced the opening of a new apartment complex, Messenger Place, as Downtown Manassas development continues to boom.

The name, Messenger Place, pays homage to the News & Messenger Newspaper formed in 1857, and eventually closed down in 2012.

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