Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Florida on April 6
We’re keeping track of the latest news regarding the coronavirus in South Florida and around the state. Check back for updates throughout the day.
MIAMI-DADE PLANS ‘MASS FEEDING’ EFFORT
6:10 p.m.: Bracing for the day when food pantries aren’t enough amid the coronavirus pandemic, Miami-Dade’s government is planning for regular food distributions countywide.
Staff at the Emergency Operations Center have discussed using closed parks and libraries for neighborhood drive-through food centers. The latest strategy centers on schools given they generally have larger parking lots to handle streams of vehicles arriving to pick up food under new social-distancing requirements.
To prepare, Miami-Dade has ordered 500,000 ready-to-eat meals.
Read the full story here.
RAPID CORONAVIRUS TEST ON WAY TO JACKSON MEMORIAL
5:35 p.m.: A newly released, rapid coronavirus test that can return results in five to 15 minutes is on its way to Miami’s public hospital after Gov. Ron DeSantis intervened on Jackson Health System’s behalf.
“I was quite upset about the fact that we were the main public safety net in Miami, and the largest hospital in the state of Florida ... that we didn’t get any [access to rapid testing],” Jackson Health CEO Carlos Migoya said.
But later on Sunday, Migoya found out Jackson would get the tests after all. Cleveland Clinic in Weston, which had been set to receive the tests, had deferred to Jackson and would send one of its machines with test cartridges to Miami.
Read the full story here.
WORKERS AT MIAMI-DADE ICE DETENTION CENTER TEST POSITIVE
5:20 p.m.: Two employees who work at the Krome detention center, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility that houses immigration detainees in Miami-Dade, tested positive for the coronavirus, ICE officials confirmed.
The staffers, who work for Akima Global Services, the government contractor that operates the facility for ICE, were confirmed to have tested positive on Monday by the federal agency.
Read the full story here.
COSTA FAVOLOSA CRUISE SHIP CREW MEMBER DIES
3:35 p.m.: A crew member from the Costa Favolosa cruise ship died at Larkin Community Palm Springs Hospital in Hialeah on Saturday after contracting COVID-19, the cruise company confirmed.
Mumbai newspaper Mid-Day confirmed the crew member is Andrew Fernandes, 48, a father of four from India.
Fernandes was evacuated on March 29 from the Carnival Corporation-owned Costa Favolosa and Costa Magica cruise ships, three days after 13 other crew members were transported to Miami hospitals on March 26. Once in the hospital, Fernandes tested positive for COVID-19, the company said in a statement.
Read the full story here.
WHAT’S OPEN? WHAT’S CLOSED?
3:15 p.m.: What’s open and what’s closed during Miami’s current stay-at-home order? Here’s a list of local businesses the Miami Herald put together ...
AS OUR CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE CONTINUES, WE NEED YOUR HELP
2:15 p.m.: Aminda Marqués González, the publisher and executive editor of the Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald, wrote a letter to readers that was published Monday afternoon.
González wrote: “The novel coronavirus crisis has been an all-hands drill unlike any we’ve seen. In the past month, our journalists at the Miami Herald and el Nuevo Herald have been working nearly round the clock to provide readers with critical coverage.
“We have published dozens of stories and videos a day, from a steady stream of breaking news to accountability journalism and investigative stories. We have answered scores of reader questions, investigated tips, fought for access to government briefings, filed dozens of public records requests and shared much-needed stories of resiliency and uplift.
“We provided all of this coronavirus coverage for free.
“Now, we simply can’t afford to do that anymore.”
Read the full letter here.
FLORIDA UPGRADES ONLINE UNEMPLOYMENT SYSTEM
1:40 p.m.: Florida officials say they made huge improvements to the unemployment system over the weekend, but the state still faces a massive backlog of applications that will likely require Floridians to wait weeks before seeing any money.
During a Monday morning news conference, Gov. Ron DeSantis and state officials said they’re aiming to process 80,000 applications this week.
Read the full story here.
SAD NEWS FROM EX-MIAMI ANCHOR
1:15 p.m.: Adam Kuperstein reported some sad news on Monday morning: The former NBC 6 Miami anchor’s father has died of coronavirus.
“My dad died with a stranger holding his hand,” Kuperstein, a former Miami sports and news anchor who is now based with NBC in New York City, wrote on social media.
The son of Holocaust survivors, he had been on a ventilator in ICU at an Indianapolis hospital.
“All we could do was listen on the phone (from our separate quarantines), choking back tears, as the nurse informed us, ‘his heart stopped,’” the TV journalist posted. “That’s when our hearts broke. We were shattered.”
Read the full story here.
AMERICAN AIRLINES CUTS DAILY NEW YORK-TO-MIAMI FLIGHTS
12:50 p.m.: Starting Tuesday, only two flights a day will bring people from New York City to Miami on American Airlines.
This is part of another reduction in flights from New York, an area hit hard by the coronavirus, that was announced to employees in a letter from American Senior Vice President of Operations David Seymour. The reduced schedule will run until May 6.
Read the full story here.
HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN MIAMI-DADE’S COMMISSION MEETING
11:50 a.m.: Here’s a tweet from Miami Herald reporter Doug Hanks on how you can participate in Tuesday’s Miami-Dade County Commission meeting ...
UPDATED STATE CASE NUMBERS
11:30 a.m.: Florida’s Department of Health on Monday morning confirmed 974 additional cases of COVID-19, bringing the state total of confirmed cases to 13,324. There were 15 new deaths reported, bringing the statewide total to 236.
It was not immediately clear if there were any additional COVID-19 confirmed cases reported in South Florida.
The state’s numbers will again be updated Monday evening.
HOW DAVE BARRY IS CONFRONTING CORONAVIRUS
10:35 a.m.: Here’s how Dave Barry begins his column: “On day 43,000 of sheltering in place, I decided to make a face mask. For a while they were saying that we civilians didn’t need to wear face masks, but now they’re saying that we should. At least I think that’s what they’re now saying.”
Read Barry’s full column here.
HOW CORONAVIRUS IS CHANGING PASSOVER
9:55 a.m.: The Passover Seder table at the Luri house is usually festooned with kosher wine, matzoh and bitter herbs.
The most important part of their holiday dinner: about 30 family and friends.
But the Luris — along with Jewish families in South Florida and around the world — are rethinking how to celebrate the springtime holiday that commemorates the Jews’ exodus from Egypt. It’s because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
South Florida synagogues have suspended services and canceled community celebrations, or moved them to online platforms. Miami Beach has recently banned minyans, or Jewish prayer gatherings in private homes.
Passover begins Wednesday night and spans eight days
Read the full story here.
WESTON MAYOR TESTS POSITIVE
9:15 a.m.: Weston Mayor Daniel J. Stermer has tested positive for COVID-19. He received his test results late Sunday night, according to the city.
The city says Stermer has been in quarantine since March 31 and will remain in quarantine at least until April 14.
CATCH UP TO START THE DAY
9 a.m.: Here are the coronavirus headlines to catch you up on what’s happening around South Florida and the state as Monday begins.
▪ Miami-Dade still accounts for a third of Florida’s coronavirus cases and saw deaths from the virus spike over the weekend.
▪ Amid coronavirus concerns, a Miami couple got married on the balcony of their Brickell apartment. Their neighbors attended.
▪ As schools across the nation experiment with remote, online learning while the coronavirus pandemic shutters schools, educators and students are realizing its limitations and unintended consequences ... like “Zoom bombers.”
▪ A narrow majority of Florida voters approve of the job Gov. Ron DeSantis is doing, while most disapprove of the way President Donald Trump is handling the crisis.
▪ Miami-Dade’s Jackson hospital system sent a team to assess severely ill Coral Princess passengers and county paramedics were dispatched to the port to assist.
▪ Miami’s arts and culture scene was flourishing. But the coronavirus crisis is now battering it.
This story was originally published April 6, 2020 at 9:19 AM with the headline "Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Florida on April 6."
