As of Friday, August 14, 2020, Montana reports 5,541 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 134 new cases reported in the last day: 39 in Yellowstone County, 16 in Big Horn County, 12 in Flathead County, 11 in Missoula County, 8 in Cascade County, 7 in each of Gallatin, Phillips, and Rosebud Counties, 5 in Glacier County, 4 in Roosevelt County, 3 in Lewis & Clark County, 2 in each of Dawson, Deer Lodge, Hill, and Park Counties, and 1 in each of Blaine, Fergus, Jefferson, Madison, Musselshell, Ravalli, and Silver Bow Counties. Statewide, 319 people have been hospitalized, and 86 are currently being treated in the hospital for COVID-19. Yellowstone County has had 1,463 cases so far, and Gallatin County has had 977. The number of active coronavirus cases in Montana is 1,449. The most active cases are in Yellowstone County, with 579 active cases, while Gallatin County has 35 active cases. 81 people have died in Montana of COVID-19. Nationwide, more than 167,000 Americans have died.

In just the past week, Phillips County with a population of about 4,000 people has gone from zero cases to 85 cases of coronavirus infection. Coronavirus cases spiked in Phillips County following social and sporting events: People were infected at a wedding, then through softball teams, then at bars. Most cases are people in their twenties and thirties, and the cases are community spread.

Stanford won’t bring students back to campus this fall. Instead, the university will provide virtually all of its instruction remotely. Stanford had originally planned to bring freshman, sophomore and new transfer undergraduate students to campus in the fall, followed by juniors and seniors in the spring, and to deliver some instruction in person and in a hybrid format. Now only a limited number of students with “special circumstances” will be on the Stanford campus. The university’s announcement cited worsening public health conditions in northern California involving COVID-19. Already, its athletic conference, the Pac-12, postponed sports this fall. Stanford joins numerous other major universities in going fully online.

A restaurant in Helena has been ordered to close. Pizza Ranch continued serving buffet-style against public health directives to prevent the spread of coronavirus. Lewis & Clark County/ District Court Judge/ Kathy Seeley signed a temporary restraining order on Aug. 12 which forbids Pizza Ranch from operating a “self-serve” buffet. The order comes after multiple complaints about Pizza Ranch’s continued use of buffet-style serving. Gov. Steve Bullock’s May 19 directive, as well as CDC recommendations, require closing self-serve food or drink options, such as buffets, salad bars and drink stations. This is the second time a judge has issued a restraining order to enforce health orders in the county. Previously the Helena Farmers’ Market was ordered to cease operations.

Two Missoula police officers have tested positive for COVID-19. The officers are in quarantine and their coworkers are being tested. It’s expected that contact tracing will also be done. In June and July, five Missoula firefighters tested positive for COVID-19. All 96 people in the Missoula fire department were tested. the five new cases were not all connected or in the same station. At one point, 51 firefighters—more than half the entire crew—were in quarantine.