The 2019 novel coronavirus creeped undetected into El Paso County in early 2020 — likely in February, though state officials speculate it could have arrived in the state as early as January — and began spreading unchecked for at least a month.

On March 13, Gov. Jared Polis announced the first person to die of the virus in the state was an 83-year-old Colorado Springs woman. She had played in a local bridge tournament with other elderly residents from across the state while she was contagious, about two weeks before she was diagnosed. The outbreak was a worse-case scenario because tournament attendees were mostly elderly and at-risk individuals. At the same time, hospitals were beginning to fill with coronavirus patients, and test results were slow to return.

The early days of the virus triggered panic-buying that cleared local grocery store shelves of toilet paper, hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes. A widespread shortage of personal protective equipment made masks and face shields precious commodities that needed to be reserved for frontline workers. So volunteers stepped up in El Paso County, making hundreds of cloth masks that were donated to nursing home workers, city and county employees and others.

On March 25 Gov. Jared Polis announced a stay-at-home order that lasted for a month and slowed the virus’ spread. The order shuttered many establishments but left open businesses deemed critical such as grocery stores, pharmacies, hardware shops and others. Polis’ decision created a flurry of controversy over which businesses were classified as necessary to remain open. In days prior he had issued executive orders closing downhill ski resorts, bars, restaurants, gyms, theaters and casinos. He had issued an executive order closing schools on March 18.

Polis’ statewide mask mandate came much later, on July 16, after he had urged residents repeatedly to voluntarily wear them. The business community in Colorado Springs had largely supported a mask order because it would make it easier for retailers to communicate to shoppers the importance of wearing a mask. They also hoped it would prevent another lockdown order. The mandate is now in place through January.

The first shipments of COVID-19 vaccines arrived in Colorado Springs in December, marking what many hope will be a pivot toward recovery for the community. On Dec. 14, UCHealth Memorial Hospital Central received 3,900 doses of the Pfizer vaccine — the first in Colorado Springs. Fort Carson was the first Colorado military installation to receive doses of the vaccine, just before Christmas.

As of this week El Paso County had seen nearly 39,000 cases, with 540 deaths. The state had seen nearly 328,500 cases, with 3,803 deaths due to the novel virus, and 4,687 deaths among those with the virus, including those who died of other conditions.

The pandemic has impacted communities around the world in seemingly innumerable ways. Here’s a review of the pandemic’s impact on El Paso County in 2020, by sector.

Government

El Paso County was granted $125.7 million in federal relief funds in 2020 to help cover coronavirus-related costs. These funds were shared with city and towns in the county. About $37.5 million was shared with the city of Colorado Springs, and the city spent a large portion of that money paying police and firefighters. The county also planned to spend $21 million in economic and workforce development as of October.

The Colorado General Assembly dealt with budget shortfalls and an economic crisis caused by the pandemic.

A rare special session was called to pass emergency measures to help out small businesses and give one-time checks to the unemployed.

Economy

The COVID-19 pandemic triggered closures of, and restrictions on, businesses in Colorado Springs and across the state, with devastating consequences for the local and state economies. More than 340,000 Coloradans lost jobs during a statewide stay-at-home order, with the state’s unemployment rate peaking at a record 12.2%, and the Colorado Springs area jobless rate peaking at a record 12.6%. Restaurants, hotels, retailers and other businesses closed — some for months, some permanently. Restaurants in downtown Colorado Springs were especially hard hit, with many employers asking employees to work from home much of the year.

By September, both the state and the area had recovered about two thirds of the jobs lost, but job losses resumed in November as COVID-19 cases surged and business restrictions resumed. More than 140,000 first-time unemployment claims were filed statewide between mid-November and mid-December, with many of the job losses coming in hotels and restaurants.

Education

Polis issued an executive order March 18 closing schools throughout the state as officials worked to determine just how the virus spread. Many state schools returned to in-person learning in August, per the advice of local health officials, but eventually resumed virtual learning later in the semester, as virus levels skyrocketed to unprecedented highs. For students attending in person, mask-wearing, forming small group cohorts and attempts at social-distancing became the norm. Some families opted to keep their students home due to students or family members at high risk for the sometimes deadly virus; most school districts offered an online option for such families.

When the state released preliminary data from schools’ annual October count day, the numbers were startling: The state’s public schools had experienced the first decrease in year-to-year enrollment since 1988, with nearly 30,000 fewer students enrolled in preschool through grade 12, when compared to the year prior. The number of homeschool students had doubled from the year before, to nearly 16,000, and the number of students enrolled in online programs had increased by more than 40%.

Douglas County, Jefferson County, Denver Public Schools, Aurora Public Schools and Colorado Springs’ District 11 experienced the largest drop in students from last year, with Douglas County losing the most, 4,326 students, and District 11 losing the fifth most, 2,155.

Colorado Springs school were bracing to lose millions in funding, as a result.

Congregate living

The coronavirus ravaged jails and prisons across Colorado, causing nearly 6,700 infections among inmates to date and 17 deaths, according to data from the state’s Department of Corrections.

Nearly 700 El Paso County jail inmates tested positive for COVID-19 early last month, making Colorado Springs home to the state’s largest outbreak among inmates since the pandemic started. The outbreak came as inmates and staff cited a lack of mask-wearing within the jail.

The virus also swept through nursing home facilities in Colorado Springs and across the state, causing thousands of outbreaks in elderly and at-risk residents.

Homeless service providers in Colorado Springs braced for expected outbreaks that didn’t materialize until eight months after the pandemic began spreading in March. In late 2020 Springs Rescue Mission saw an active outbreak affecting 34 staff and clients, while the Salvation Army’s R.J. Montgomery Center saw seven positive COVID-19 cases among staff.

An isolation center for homeless people who have symptoms of the virus or need a place to recuperate was established at the City Auditorium in April and in recent weeks has served about 25 people at any given time. A lack of clients during summer months led the shelter to temporarily close while no one was occupying it.

Religion

Churches and other houses of worship were shuttered by the pandemic in March, then reopened to limited capacities. But many remained closed and switched to livestreamed or recorded services that were made available online.

Lawsuits claiming COVID-19 policies were more restrictive for houses of worship than other businesses made headway in October, when two Colorado churches — one in Wheat Ridge and another in Brighton — succeeding in gaining a preliminary injunction to exempt them from the state’s mask mandate policy indoors and cap on the number of people at indoor gatherings.

A U.S. Supreme Court ruling in December agreed with Colorado’s lower-court decision, leading the state public health department to drop a lawsuit against Woodland Park-based Andrew Wommack Ministries on claims of violating public health orders of a mask mandate and social distancing requirements.

Military

The Air Force Academy in April became the first American military academy to graduate cadets early since World War II when its seniors got their diplomas in April amid a somber ceremony.

The academy was locked down in March, with all cadets except the seniors sent home to ride out the pandemic. The seniors lived in isolation until the graduation, when Vice President Mike Pence lauded the class of 2020 for soldiering through difficult conditions to earn their lieutenant’s bars.

Meanwhile, U.S. Northern Command at Peterson Air Force Base took on the pandemic with military resources. The command sent Fort Carson troops to Seattle where they established an improvised hospital to help deal with spiking coronavirus cases. Troops were also sent to Texas, New York and Chicago as the military backed up civilian health care workers.

Every military base in the Pikes Peak region closed gates to visitors as leaders worked to keep crucial missions on track amid the pandemic. Troops worked in quarantine conditions, with even officers grabbing bleach and brooms to keep workplaces virus-free.

Nonprofits

March 7 was a black-tie kind of evening at The Antlers hotel, with several hundred attendees in a ballroom for an animated cocktail reception with friends, dinner and and an auction for trips and jewelry. The benefit raised thousands of dollars in support of a local nonprofit serving youth.

Abruptly, one week later, the entire nonprofit fundraising season was over, victim of the virus people were just hearing about. The night of March 14, two major galas were canceled, followed in short order by event after event — all the way through to the end of the year. In just April alone 12 fundraisers, vital to the groups’ annual budgets, went dark.

Shutdowns would become reality for an unknown number of months.

Quickly the nonprofits retooled in an all-new way, creating virtual events with supporters and donors casually comfortable in front of screens at home. Replacing those formal gala dinners were often cook-along meals led by local chefs and caterers, who as well were dealing with food service shutdowns and slowdowns. Meal kits with all the fixings were delivered to homes by masked volunteers.

Money raised by going online didn’t come close to matching what was raised during in-person years, though. In the case of one nonprofit, funds raised dropped from more than $300,000 in 2019 to just $40,000 in 2020.

The major fundraisers for 2021 are still a large question mark, with many likely to remain virtual for the foreseeable future.