Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Florida on June 4
We’re keeping track of the latest news regarding the coronavirus in South Florida and around the state.
Check back for updates on COVID-19 throughout the day.
INTER MIAMI RETURNS TO PRACTICE
6:30 p.m.: After 84 days restricted to individual workouts, Inter Miami players finally were able to train alongside teammates and pass the ball to each other on Thursday. Granted, it was just small-group practices — six players on half a field — but it was better than training alone.
Major League Soccer on Thursday lifted the moratorium on full-team training for the first time since the COVID-19 stoppage began 12 weeks ago, clearing the way for teams to train as a full group so long as each team’s plan is approved by the league and local government and health authorities. The league plans to return to play in July with a tournament in Central Florida.
Read the full story here.
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY ICE FACILITY WILL TEST ALL INCOMING DETAINEES
6 p.m.: Every immigration detainee who gets booked into the Krome detention center in western Miami-Dade County will be tested for the coronavirus starting Thursday, immigration officials told a Miami federal judge.
The decision to test detainees at Krome — as well as 21 other United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centers nationwide — comes as COVID-19 cases surge behind bars. The only centers that have committed to testing new detainees are facilities that are operated by ICE’s in-house medical provider, Health Service Corps. About 200 other facilities are operated by third-party contractors and will not be testing detainees at intake.
STATE UNIVERSITIES PLAN FALL RETURN
5:30 p.m.: Officials from Florida’s 12 state universities are formulating a plan to return to campuses in the fall, which they will present to the state university system’s Board of Governors on June 23.
The proposals will include a litany of changes to protocol. Florida State University, for example, will not assign triple or quadruple dorm rooms in the fall. The University of Florida will even start classes a week later than initially planned.
Read the full story here.
AUTONATION PERMANENTLY LAYS OFF 3,500
5 p.m.: AutoNation is permanently laying off 3,500 employees at its Fort Lauderdale headquarters and at various United States dealership locations. The company said in a statement it is adjusting to the “new normal” in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 500 of the layoffs are in South Florida.
“The business environment continues to change and AutoNation is adapting by restructuring and reducing the work force,” said Marc Cannon, AutoNation’s chief customer experience officer. “At AutoNation, we have adjusted to the new normal, which focuses on digital and store efficiencies. ... As a result, we have made the difficult decision to eliminate approximately 3,500 positions in the field and at headquarters, most of which were associates on unpaid leave.”
Read the full story here.
CURIOUS ABOUT ANTIBODY TESTING? WATCH OUR LIVE CHAT
4:11 p.m.: The University of Miami has partnered with Miami-Dade County to work on COVID-19 antibody testing throughout the county. The Miami Herald is hosting a live chat with Dr. Erin Kobetz at 4:30 p.m. to discuss the partnership.
You can watch the stream on Facebook or YouTube.
ICE DETAINEES TESTIFY VIRTUALLY
2:56 p.m.: In an unusual virtual hearing in federal court Wednesday, three immigration detainees gave live, first-hand details of life behind bars during the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Deivys Perez Valladares, a 25-year-old Cuban national, was one of them. It was the first time that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees told their accounts directly to U.S. District Court Judge Marcia G. Cooke, via telephone, as part of an ongoing lawsuit filed in early April seeking the release of South Florida detainees as coronavirus cases continue to climb.
One detail Valladares pointed out: The ICE officer standing next to him as he spoke was not wearing protective gear.
Read the full story here.
NBA OWNERS APPROVE RETURN PLAN IN CENTRAL FLORIDA
2:23 p.m.: NBA owners nearly unanimously voted to prove the league’s return-to-play proposal, which will send 22 teams, including the Miami Heat, to Walt Disney World next month to close out the regular season and play the postseason at a central location amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Twenty-nine of the league’s 30 owners voted in favor of the proposal.
Training camps for the 22 teams will begin June 30 and last about a week before the teams head to Central Florida to play out the rest of the season at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. The National Basketball Players Association will discuss the proposal Friday in a virtual meeting.
Read the full story here.
NFL TAKES FIRST STEP TOWARD RETURN
1:38 p.m.: The NFL Hasn’t rushed to make decisions about how COVID-19 will affect the upcoming season, but the league is taking an important step forward Friday. NFL coaches, including Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores, can return to their offices Friday after being banished from them for nearly three months because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Organizations are still capped at 100 employees permitted inside team buildings, and the league. The league encourages coaches and staff, particularly those in a high-risk of serious complications from coronavirus, to speak with medical professionals about any necessary precautions or accommodations.
Read the full story here.
FLORIDA’S UPDATED CASE NUMBERS
12:45 p.m.: Florida’s Department of Health on Thursday confirmed 1,419 additional cases of COVID-19, bringing the state’s total to 60,183 confirmed cases.
Thursday’s daily total of newly confirmed cases is the most the state has seen since Florida’s Department of Health began providing daily updates on the novel coronavirus in March. Miami-Dade County has 323 new cases, Broward County has 123 new cases and Palm Beach County has 211 new cases. Monroe County added one additional case.
Read the full story here.
WATCH ‘BENDING THE CURVE’ PART 2
12:15 p.m.: The second part of ‘Bending the Curve,’ McClatchy’s virtual event series about COVID-19, begins at 12:30 p.m. “The Path to a Vaccine” will explore the current journey to a coronavirus vaccine with medical research underway and vaccine trials launched.
The panel consists of Natalie Dean, Ph.D.; Bill Gruber, MD.; Elizabeth McGraw, Ph.D.; and Jonathan Quick, MD. Idaho Statesman investigative reporter Audrey Dutton will moderate.
Read the full story and watch the panel here.
MIAMI BEACH ADDS FUNDING TO RENTAL RELIEF PROGRAM
11:30 a.m.: After Miami Beach was overwhelmed with requests for rent assistance last month, the city has pledged $336,000 in additional federal money to help more residents pay their overdue rent. This is in addition to $550,000 already budgeted by the city for rent relief.
Unlike the first round of funding — which will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis — the order of appointments for the second round of funding will be based on a lottery. The program is funded mainly from two federal sources: the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act and the HOME Investment Partnership Program. Residents can apply until the end of Friday. The city will hold the lottery Monday.
Read the full story here.
WHY WON’T SOUTH FLORIDA BARS OPEN FRIDAY?
11 a.m.: While the rest of Florida moves into Phase 2 of reopening Friday, Gov. Ron DeSantis said Wednesday three counties are an exception: Miami-Dade County, Broward County and Palm Beach County. It has owners of local bars, which will be allowed to reopen once Phase 2 begins, asking one question: Why?
“Are we being punished?” Adam Gersten, owner of Gramps. “Did our counties vote the wrong way?”
The decision actually lies primarily at the feet of local leaders, who can move into Phase 2 with a written request from county mayors or administrators. Spokespeople for Miami-Dade and Broward counties, at least, said there is no target date yet.
Read the full story here.
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY GYMS CAN REOPEN MONDAY
10:30 a.m.: Gyms and fitness studios in Miami-Dade County will be allowed to reopen Monday after nearly three months of closures because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Mayor Carlos A. Gimenez said Thursday. Monday will also be the first day summer camps can reopen and the first day short-term vacation rentals will be allowed.
“The next thing is movie theaters and bars and lounges,” he said. “We expect the rest of Miami-Dade County to reopen fairly soon.”
Read the full story here.
HERE’S HOW TO GET FREE ANTIBODY TESTING IN SOUTH FLORIDA
10 a.m.: Florida is expanding its free antibody testing and three new South Florida sites open Thursday. Anyone over the age of 18 can now get tested at Hard Rock Stadium, the Miami Beach Convention Center and the FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches.
At all three sites, one must show an ID proving they are 18 or older to get tested. The convention center will be offering 80 antibody tests a day, Hard Rock will have 125 tests per day and the Ballpark of the Palm Beaches will have about 40 tests per day.
Read the full story here.
FLORIDA UNEMPLOYMENT CLAIMS SURGE
9:30 a.m.: Even as unemployment claims fall across the United States, jobless filings surged in Florida this week. New claims last week jumped by 31,083 to 206,494, while unemployment filings fell by 249,000 to 1,877,000. More than 43 million Americans have no filed for unemployment since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March.
Florida’s number could jump again this week. So far, 1.84 million Floridians have filed for unemployment and there is currently a queue of 244,030 claims to be processed.
Read the full story here.
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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 Wednesday begins.
▪ Florida had 1,317 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, the largest single-day increase since April. The state’s total passed 58,000.
▪ Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Florida will move into Phase II of reopening Friday despite the large spike in cases Wednesday. Phase II allows for bars, clubs, bowling alleys and movie theaters to reopen with limited capacity. Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties, however, won’t enter Phase II on Friday.
▪ The NBA will likely make its return-to-play plan official Thursday after commissioner Adam Silver proposed a format with 22 teams gathering in Central Florida. As the Miami Heat prepares, All-Star Jimmy Butler returned to South Florida after spending the first part of the hiatus in California.
▪ Major League Soccer is the biggest sports league to lay out a timeline with specific dates. The league formalized a return-to-play plan which will have all 26 teams, including Inter Miami, head to Central Florida on June 24 to play in a tournament. A start date has not yet been set, but MLS expects it to begin in July.
▪ Walk-up testing becomes available at a handful of Publix stores across Florida on Thursday, including one in Fort Lauderdale. Home Depot will soon host testing sites at some of its stores, too.
▪ Spirit Airlines plans to more than triple its current service out of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport by the end of July. The Miramar company had scaled down operations to less than 10 percent of pre-pandemic capacity and expects to be back up to 70 percent next month.
▪ Caribbean nations are reopening airports and relaunching tourism brands this week. The airports serving the western Caribbean islands, and the airport serving Antigua and Barbuda both reopen Thursday.
▪ The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention unveiled a new color-coded grading system for cruise ships, which could help some stranded employees finally get home after spending months at sea.
▪ Cuba is dealing with a new outbreak of COVID-19, which has led to 124 new cases in the country.
▪ The Clevelander South Beach Hotel and Bar will reopen this week for dine-in services, using the closed-down Ocean Drive to expand outdoor dining.
▪ Universal Studios Orlando will reopen to the public Friday, but had annual pass holders come through for a test run Wednesday.
This story was originally published June 4, 2020 at 9:09 AM with the headline "Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Florida on June 4."
