As of Monday, September 27, 2021, Montana reports 147,287 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 1,247 new cases of coronavirus infection reported since Friday: 161 new cases in Missoula County, 126 new cases in Yellowstone County, 114 new cases in Gallatin County, 102 new cases in Lewis & Clark County, and more new cases in 45 more Montana counties. The number of active coronavirus cases in Montana is 11,007. Currently, 415 people are being treated in Montana hospitals for COVID-19. 1,973 people have died in Montana of COVID-19. Twenty-two more deaths have been reported since Friday. Nationwide, more than 688,000 Americans have died of COVID-19. There have been 42,900,000 cases of coronavirus in the US, and counting.

Three people were killed and dozens injured after the Amtrak Empire Builder train derailed Saturday along Montana’s Hi-Line, 3 miles east of Joplin near Chester. The Empire Builder route originated in Chicago and was destined for Seattle and Portland. There were 146 passengers and 13 crew members aboard.

More Montana schools have closed due to COVID-19 outbreaks: Trego School in Lincoln County, Potomac Elementary School in Missoula County, Frazer School in Valley County. Montana had the worst increase in coronavirus cases in the nation over the past two weeks per capita.

Falling water levels at Lake Powell, the second-largest man-made reservoir in the US, are so low they could make the dam’s hydroelectric power generation impossible as soon as next year, according to the US Bureau of Reclamation. The troubling projections show that Lake Powell, which is located on the Colorado River from northern Arizona to southern Utah, could drop below the minimum level needed to allow the lake’s Glen Canyon Dam to generate hydroelectricity next year.