Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Florida on June 23
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.
Coronavirus vaccine could be ready before 2021, a ‘cautiously optimistic’ Fauci says
7:15 p.m.: Feeling “cautiously optimistic,” Dr. Anthony Fauci told Congress Tuesday that a COVID-19 vaccine could be available to the American public by the end of the year, or early 2021.
As the nation’s top infectious disease expert, Fauci served as a key member of the White House coronavirus task force, and helped to inform President Donald Trump during the early months of the pandemic. Tuesday, he testified before the House Energy and Commerce Committee regarding the COVID-19 crisis.
“We feel cautiously optimistic, based on the concerted effort and the fact we are taking financial risks — not risks to safety, not risks to the integrity of the science, but financial risk to be able to be ahead of the game — so that when, and I believe it will be when and not if, we get favorable candidates with good results, we will be able to make them available to the American public,” Fauci said. “It would put us at the end of this calendar year and the beginning of 2021.”
Read the full story here.
DeSantis warns bars, restaurants that licenses are at risk if they break COVID rules
6:45 p.m.: Florida bars and restaurants that violate the state’s social distancing guidelines now risk losing their liquor licenses.
That’s according to Gov. Ron DeSantis, who made the announcement at a news conference Tuesday in Orlando.
“If you go in and it’s just like mayhem, like dance party USA and it’s packed to the rafters, that’s just cut and dry. That’s not just an innocent mistake,” DeSantis said.
The governor said businesses that are clearly out of compliance with state rules can count on a visit from Department of Business and Professional Regulation Secretary Halsey Beshears, whom DeSantis called “the grim reaper for business licenses.”
“There’s not going to be any tolerance for it,” said DeSantis, who has ordered restaurants and bars to operate at 50% capacity indoors.
Read the full story here.
Trump-Biden debate relocates to Miami as University of Michigan frets about COVID-19
5:15 p.m.:The Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts will host a presidential debate in October, bringing the full weight of the 2020 election to Miami less than than three weeks before Nov. 3 election.
The county-owned venue — which remains closed due to the coronavirus pandemic — confirmed Tuesday morning that it will host the debate, expected to be the second between President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden. The event is scheduled for a Thursday evening, Oct 15, and will be televised from 9 to 10:30 p.m. EDT without commercial breaks, according to The Commission on Presidential Debates, the nonprofit that has sponsored and produced presidential debates since 1988.
“We are honored to have the opportunity to represent Miami on the global stage and to play a small role in the democratic process,” said Johann Zietsman, president of the nonprofit Arsht Center, which runs the complex.
Read the full story here.
Florida yanks this college bar’s license after dozens test positive for COVID-19
3 p.m.: A bar near the University of Central Florida has had its state alcoholic beverage license suspended for violating reopening guidelines after 13 employees and at least 28 customers tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
The Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation announced Monday night the emergency suspension of the license of The Knights Pub in Orlando. The suspension came two days after Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state would begin cracking down on restaurants and bars that fail to follow coronavirus guidelines.
Florida reports more than 3,000 coronavirus cases, pushing statewide total to 103,506
1:00 p.m.: Florida’s Department of Health on Tuesday confirmed 3,289 additional cases of COVID-19, bringing the state’s total to 103,506. There were also 64 new deaths announced, raising the statewide death toll to 3,237.
Florida 17-year-old is the youngest in the state to die from coronavirus, records show
8:45 a.m.: A 17-year-old in Florida has died from COVID-19 complications, making him the first person in the state under 18 to die from the disease, according to Florida Department of Health records.
The Pasco County teen had been hospitalized at some point during his illness, data shows.
Previously, the youngest person in Florida to have died from COVID-19 was a 22-year-old woman in Palm Beach County who had no recent travel history and had been hospitalized at some point during her illness, data shows. The state has recorded more than 3,000 COVID-19 deaths since the pandemic began in March.
Read the full story here.
CATCH UP TO START THE DAY
8:30 a.m.: Here are the coronavirus headlines to catch you up on what’s happening around South Florida and the state as Tuesday begins.
▪ Florida hits 100,000 mark as state confirms another 2,926 daily coronavirus cases
▪ Miami-Dade’s largest cities to require masks in public as COVID-19 numbers spike
▪ ‘They deserve to be put on blast’: Social media is policing COVID-19 rule breakers
▪ Florida’s surgeon general quietly advises everyone to wear masks in public spaces
This story was originally published June 23, 2020 at 8:46 AM with the headline "Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Florida on June 23."
