Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Florida on June 7
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.
STATE OFFERS UNLIMITED ANTIBODY TESTING AT HARD ROCK STADIUM
5:18 p.m.: The state-run antibody testing site at Hard Rock Stadium will no longer have a cap on available tests. The Miami Gardens stadium, which has offered free antibody testing for anyone 18 or older since Thursday, rapidly increased the cap on daily available tests from 125 to 250 on Sunday and will remove the cap altogether Monday.
The testing site at Hard Rock is one of three the state opened in South Florida this week. The Miami Beach Convention Center offers 80 tests per day and the FITTEAM Ballpark of the Palm Beaches in West Palm Beach offers 40 each day.
WHAT HAPPENS IF A HURRICANE HITS DURING PANDEMIC?
2 p.m.: Tropical Storm Cristobal isn’t going to affect life in Florida as it swirls through the Gulf of Mexico and up to Louisiana, but future tropical storms and hurricanes inevitably will. In all likelihood, severe weather will strike while the COVID-19 pandemic still forces society to have some preventative measures. When hurricane season began Monday, emergency managers had to implement a new-look plan.
The biggest challenge is handling shelters, whose cramped, people-packed quarters are everything epidemiologists warn against. To combat concern, shelters will screen incoming evacuees for symptoms upon entry and the state hopes to eventually upgrade to rapid testing by August or September.
Florida is also recommending evacuees be given 60 feet of space rather than their usual 20 and Miami-Dade County plans to have 82 available shelters this year compared to 20 for Hurricane Irma last year. The extra shelters give the county the capability to house 412,000 people, Mayor Carlos A. Gimenez said Monday. Every evacuee will be given a kit with a mask, gloves, hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes, he added.
FLORIDA’S UPDATED CASE NUMBERS
1 p.m.: Florida’s Department of Health on Sunday confirmed 1,180 additional cases of COVID-19, bringing the state’s total closer to 64,000 known cases. The state now has a total of 63,938 confirmed cases.
This marks five straight days Florida has confirmed more than 1,000 cases, but it comes as the state has significantly beefed up its testing. The percentage of positive cases has declined in the last six weeks.
Miami-Dade County reported 248 cases Sunday,. Broward County reported 114 and five deaths, and Palm Beach County reported 156 cases and two deaths. Monroe County has one new case and no new deaths.
Read the full story here.
LE BATARD RETURNS TO MIAMI BEACH STUDIO
Noon: “The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz,” the popular Miami Beach-based ESPN Radio show, will begin broadcasting from its studio again Monday. Host Dan Le Batard, co-host Jon Weiner and producer Mike Ryan will all be back in the studio, housed inside the Clevelander South Beach Hotel and Bar, for the first time since March.
Le Batard’s return comes a week after the Clevelander South Beach reopened for dine-in service. The party hotspot had been closed since March because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Precautions will be taken on the set of “The Dan Le Batard Show.” Protective masks will be worn into the premises, social distancing will apply and temperatures of cast members will be taken as they arrive.
Read the full story here.
WHAT REOPENS IN SOUTH FLORIDA THIS WEEK?
11 a.m.: While the rest of Florida moved into Phase 2 of reopening Friday, Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties still all lag behind the state. Bars, clubs, movie theaters and bowling alleys reopened in all other counties Friday, but South Florida’s three largest counties are exempted because they’ve been a hotspot for the COVID-19 pandemic.
Still, the counties are expanding their offerings Monday. In Miami-Dade County, gyms, summer camps and dog parks can reopen Monday. In Broward County, summer camps will also reopen and the county has set a date to open up some of the Phase 2 offerings. The county plans to let movie theaters, vacation rentals and concert houses reopen June 15.
None of the three counties have outlined a plan to fully move into Phase 2. Spokespeople for both Dade and Broward counties said there is no target date to begin Phase 2.
DOG PARKS REOPEN MONDAY
10 a.m.: After nearly three months closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, dog parks will reopen Monday in Miami-Dade County and it comes as a huge relief to pet owners, particularly those stuck in smaller urban apartments.
New rules at the parks mandate face coverings when six feet of distancing cannot be maintained, no congregating of groups of 10 or more and limited hours from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Read the full story here.
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 Sunday begins.
▪ Florida had more than 1,000 people test positive for COVID-19 on Saturday, but the hefty numbers come as testing increases and the percentage of positive tests stays low.
▪ Summer camps will reopen in Miami-Dade County on Monday with masks required and social-distancing guidelines in place.
▪ County libraries will also open Monday with preventative measures in place to combat the coronavirus.
This story was originally published June 7, 2020 at 9:28 AM with the headline "Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Florida on June 7."
