Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Florida on April 26
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 ISSUES STATEMENT ON NBA FACILITIES POSSIBLY REOPENING
5:30 p.m.: The NBA is allowing teams to open their practice facilities to players beginning on Friday in cities and states where local governments have loosened stay-at-home orders. According to ESPN, group workouts will still be prohibited, but teams will be allowed to make facilities open to players on a voluntary basis for individual work.
Will the Heat be able to open its AmericanAirlines Arena practice facility to players on Friday?
“From what we have heard so far, the NBA’s intention is to begin allowing INDIVIDUAL player workouts at team facilities,” Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez’s Office of Communications said in a statement sent to the Miami Herald on Sunday. “As of right now, under current orders, the AmericanAirlines Arena is closed. But, we have until Friday to gather information on what the NBA plans are and to work with the Miami Heat on what could be possible, safe and acceptable.”
CORAL GABLES TO HOLD MEETING TO DISCUSS BRINGING TESTING TO CITY
3:10 p.m.: Coral Gables will hold a special virtual meeting Monday at 9 a.m. to discuss details of bringing COVID-19 testing to the city. Here’s more information on the upcoming meeting ...
FLORIDA’S UPDATED CASE NUMBERS
1:10 p.m.: Another 689 reported confirmed COVID-19 cases put Florida’s total at 31,528 as of Sunday morning. The state’s death toll stands at 1,074.
Miami-Dade County (11,351 confirmed COVID-19 cases) and Broward County (4,729 confirmed COVID-19 cases) combine to make up 51 percent of Florida’s confirmed case total.
Read the full update on Florida’s case numbers here. The state cut back to once-a-day updates Saturday, so the next update on Florida’s coronavirus numbers will come Monday morning.
SERVICE STATION FOR UNHOUSED OPENS IN OVERTOWN
11:45 a.m.: The service site for the unhoused in Miami’s Overtown area opened at Overtown’s St. John Institutional Missionary Baptist Church this week.
The site includes 20 porta potties, four showers and regular access to education about COVID-19 as well as resources such as gloves, masks, meals, tents and sanitary wipes.
NBA FACILITIES WILL BEGIN TO REOPEN FRIDAY
10:15 a.m.: All NBA facilities have been closed to players and staff since March 20 amid the coronavirus pandemic.
But that’s about to change, as the NBA is allowing teams to open their practice facilities to players beginning on Friday in cities and states where local governments have loosened stay-at-home orders. According to ESPN, group workouts will still be prohibited, but teams will be allowed to make facilities open to players on a voluntary basis for individual work.
For those teams in cities where stay-at-home orders still keep practice facilities closed, the NBA will work to find “alternative arrangements” for players, according to the Associated Press. While the reopening of league facilities is a step in the right direction, it’s still unknown whether the remainder of the 2019-20 NBA season will be played.
As of Saturday evening, it was unclear whether the Miami Heat would be one of the teams allowed to open its practice facilities to players on Friday based on orders implemented by the local government.
Read the full story here.
CATCH UP TO START THE DAY
9:10 a.m.: Here are the coronavirus headlines to catch you up on what’s happening around South Florida and the state as Sunday begins.
▪ Florida sees steepest decline in new daily coronavirus cases, deaths. This may be an anomaly
▪ Miami-Dade’s COVID-19 shutdowns were sudden and sweeping. Reopening gets complicated.
▪ ‘I’m not in a rush.’ DeSantis says no theaters or sports venues yet. Florida will reopen in phases
▪ As Florida COVID-19 numbers near 31,000, DeSantis assures ‘prudent’ reopening of the state
▪ Barbers, stylists do their job up close and personal. None can work in the pandemic.
▪ Recovered COVID-19 patients can help save the lives of others. Hospitals need your blood.
This story was originally published April 26, 2020 at 9:19 AM with the headline "Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Florida on April 26."
