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Slideshow: Bethel Pulls Together As COVID-19 Closes In

KYUK | By Katie Baldwin Basile
Published March 29, 2020 at 10:41 AM AKDT
Registered Nurse Avelina Chung runs through protocol with a YKHC employee at the COVID-19 drive-thru test site on March 25, 2020 in Bethel, Alaska.
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Registered Nurse Avelina Chung runs through protocol with a YKHC employee at the COVID-19 drive-thru test site on March 25, 2020 in Bethel, Alaska.
Katie Basile / KYUK
A drive-thru test site was erected in a YKHC parking lot in preparation for the COVID-19 emergency. Testing for COVID-19 in the open air is safer than testing inside of the hospital. March 25, 2020 in Bethel, Alaska.
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A drive-thru test site was erected in a YKHC parking lot in preparation for the COVID-19 emergency. Testing for COVID-19 in the open air is safer than testing inside of the hospital. March 25, 2020 in Bethel, Alaska.
Katie Basile / KYUK
The new COVID-19 drive-thru test site is run by a rotating staff of doctors, nurses, medical assistants, and security guards. Patients must call the YKHC triage hotline at 543-6949 in order to make an appointment to be tested at the drive-thru site.
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The new COVID-19 drive-thru test site is run by a rotating staff of doctors, nurses, medical assistants, and security guards. Patients must call the YKHC triage hotline at 543-6949 in order to make an appointment to be tested at the drive-thru site.
Katie Basile / KYUK
Dr. Elizabeth Bates and Registered Nurse Avelina Chung work at the COVID-19 drive-thru test site in Bethel on March 25, 2020.
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Dr. Elizabeth Bates and Registered Nurse Avelina Chung work at the COVID-19 drive-thru test site in Bethel on March 25, 2020.
Katie Basile / KYUK
A young boy picks up his breakfast and lunch from a "Meals on Wheels" bus set-up by the Lower Kuskokwim School District during state mandated school closures. March 23, 2020 in Bethel, Alaska.
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A young boy picks up his breakfast and lunch from a "Meals on Wheels" bus set-up by the Lower Kuskokwim School District during state mandated school closures. March 23, 2020 in Bethel, Alaska.
Katie Basile / KYUK
School children and their guardians picked up meals from bus stops during measures put in place to slow the spread of COVID-19.
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School children and their guardians picked up meals from bus stops around town on March 23, 2020. Schools across Alaska are closed following a state mandate put in place to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Katie Basile / KYUK
Head Start staff wave at students as they pick-up breakfast and lunch from a “Meals on Wheels’” bus set-up by the Lower Kuskokwim School District. March 23, 2020.
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Head Start staff wave at students as they pick-up breakfast and lunch from a “Meals on Wheels’” bus set-up by the Lower Kuskokwim School District. March 23, 2020.";s:3:
Katie Basile / KYUK
A family picks-up meals from an LKSD school bus near the Brown's Slough Bridge in Bethel on March 23, 2020. LKSD staff are making meals available for students district-wide during school closures.
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A family picks-up meals from an LKSD school bus near the Brown's Slough Bridge in Bethel on March 23, 2020. LKSD staff are making meals available for students district-wide during school closures.
Katie Basile / Katie
Gladys Jung Elementary Secretary Danielle Beaver prepares homework packets for parents to pick-up on March 18, 2020. Schools across Alaska are closed following a state mandate put in place to slow the spread of COVID-19.
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Gladys Jung Elementary Secretary Danielle Beaver prepares homework packets for parents to pick-up on March 18, 2020. Schools across Alaska are closed following a state mandate put in place to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Katie Basile / KYUK
Gladys Jung Elementary Secretary Fannie Evan helps Walter Jim pick-up school work and supplies for his kids on March 19, 2020 following state-wide school closures during the COVID-19 emergency.
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Gladys Jung Elementary Secretary Fannie Evan helps Walter Jim pick-up school work and supplies for his kids on March 19, 2020 following state-wide school closures during the COVID-19 emergency.
Katie Basile / KYUK
Melody Hoffman picks up meals and schoolwork for her son at Gladys Jung Elementary in Bethel, Alaska on March 19, 2020. Schools across Alaska are closed following a state mandate put in place to slow the spread of COVID-19.
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Melody Hoffman picks up meals and schoolwork for her son at Gladys Jung Elementary in Bethel, Alaska on March 19, 2020. Schools across Alaska are closed following a state mandate put in place to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Katie Basile / KYUK
Tad Lindley and Ryan Saltzman, teachers at Bethel High School, delivered schoolwork to students at various pick-up spots around Bethel on March 23, 2020.
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Tad Lindley and Ryan Saltzman, teachers at Bethel High School, delivered schoolwork to students at various pick-up spots around Bethel on March 23, 2020.
Katie Basile / KYUK
Margaret Nagasiak prepares breakfast and lunch trays for parents to pick-up at Gladys Jung Elementary School on March 19, 2020.
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Margaret Nagasiak prepares breakfast and lunch trays for parents to pick-up at Gladys Jung Elementary School on March 19, 2020.
Katie Basile / KYUK
Dental Assistant Apprentice Katie Ayuluk sews masks out of surgical wrap during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bethel, Alaska on March 26, 2020.
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Dental Assistant Apprentice Katie Ayuluk sews masks out of surgical wrap during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bethel, Alaska on March 26, 2020.
Katie Basile / KYUK
After dental clinics were mandated to close for elective dental procedures, YKHC Dental staff put together a factory-like assembly line to make protective masks for doctors and nurses. Bethel, Alaska on March 26, 2020.
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After dental clinics were mandated to close for elective dental procedures, YKHC Dental staff put together a factory-like assembly line to make protective masks for doctors and nurses. Bethel, Alaska on March 26, 2020.
Katie Basile / KYUK
Dental Assistant Supervisor Lucy Patrick shows off a completed mask she and her team made out of surgical wrap. Despite mandated closures, YKHC Dental staff in Bethel are staying busy making protective gear for medical providers. March 26, 2020.
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Dental Assistant Supervisor Lucy Patrick shows off a completed mask she and her team made out of surgical wrap. Despite mandated closures, YKHC Dental staff in Bethel are staying busy making protective gear for medical providers. March 26, 2020.
Katie Basile / KYUK
Shane McIntyre, a YKHC Remote Maintenance Worker, mixes and tests bleach solutions for disinfecting homes without running water during the COVID-19 emergency in Bethel, Alaska on March 19, 2020.
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Shane McIntyre, a YKHC Remote Maintenance Worker, mixes and tests bleach solutions for disinfecting homes without running water during the COVID-19 emergency in Bethel, Alaska on March 19, 2020.
Katie Basile / KYUK
Ken Mickelson and Bob White from the YKHC Office of Environmental Health make plans to distribute bleach solutions for disinfecting homes without running water during the COVID-19 emergency in Bethel, Alaska on March 19, 2020.
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Ken Mickelson and Bob White from the YKHC Office of Environmental Health make plans to distribute bleach solutions for disinfecting homes without running water during the COVID-19 emergency in Bethel, Alaska on March 19, 2020.
Katie Basile / KYUK
Dr. Elizabeth Bates runs through protocol with a YKHC employee at the COVID-19 drive-thru test site on March 25, 2020 in Bethel, Alaska.
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Dr. Elizabeth Bates runs through protocol with a YKHC employee at the COVID-19 drive-thru test site on March 25, 2020 in Bethel, Alaska.
Katie Basile / KYUK

People in Bethel are preparing for the arrival of COVID-19 because the region’s isolation will not protect them.

In an attempt to slow the spread of the disease, Alaska has closed schools, shuttered businesses, required social distancing, and forced hospitals to prepare for the arrival of the global pandemic. 

The Bethel community has responded by delivering meals and schoolwork to kids, erecting a drive-thru coronavirus test site, hand sewing protective masks, and creating that perfect blend of bleach and water for disinfecting homes without plumbing. 
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Katie Baldwin Basile
Katie Baldwin Basile is an independent photographer and multimedia storyteller from Bethel, Alaska.
See stories by Katie Baldwin Basile