50 ★ States
News from across the USA
ALABAMA Montgomery: Preliminary reports indicated that more than 5,000 Alabama public school students haven’t shown up for any sort of classes, virtual or in-person, state Education Superintendent Eric Mackey said.
ALASKA Anchorage: A lab in Alaska failed to report more than 1,600 positive coronavirus tests to the state health department in the past month, according to a state official.
ARIZONA Phoenix: Dr. Jill Jim, executive director of the Navajo Department of Health, has been selected as a member of President-elect Joe Biden’s COVID-19 Advisory Board, according to the Biden transition team.
ARKANSAS Little Rock: The number of people hospitalized in Arkansas with COVID-19 climbed again Friday. The state reported 1,011 people were hospitalized with the disease caused by the coronavirus, an increase of eight from Thursday.
COLORADO Fort Collins: An act of vandalism led neighbors to rally around and a Fort Collins resident and rebuild a COVID-19 memorial earlier this month.
CONNECTICUT Hartford: The number of Connecticut residents hospitalized with COVID-19 topped 1,000 on Friday, the first time it has been that high since mid-May. The new data also showed the number of nursing home residents who have been infected since the pandemic began has topped 10,000.
DELAWARE Wilmington: Gov. John Carney said he’s canceling events after AJ Schall, the director of the Delaware Emergency Management Agency, tested positive for the coronavirus on Friday. The Democratic governor said he spent time around Schall on Tuesday but was not in close contact.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Washington: Officials of the Solidcore fitness center told WUSA-TV that it has closed amid a visit from DC officials, but wants Mayor Muriel Bowser to do more for gyms and fitness centers that have to close.
FLORIDA Miami: South Florida Congressman-elect Carlos Gimenez has tested positive for the coronavirus, his campaign said Friday. The former Miami-Dade County mayor and his wife, Lourdes, tested positive Thursday after having mild symptoms, according to a statement. They said they’re self-isolating at home.
GEORGIA Savannah: Revenue losses and an uncertain economy because of the pandemic continue to be at the forefront of the city’s budget planning for 2021.
HAWAII Honolulu: Travelers to the island of Kauai will have to spend 14 days in quarantine regardless of whether they obtain a negative coronavirus test, Gov. David Ige said.
IDAHO Sandpoint: Bonner County Commissioner Steven Bradshaw has proposed defunding the local health district after the district instituted a mask mandate to slow the spread of the coronavirus as it surges in the area.
ILLINOIS Springfield: The coronavirus pandemic has extinguished some traditional holiday cheer at the state Capitol. There will be no Christmas tree nor any holiday displays inside or outside the building, The State Journal-Register reported.
INDIANA Indianapolis: Mayor Joe Hogsett and his wife have tested negative for the coronavirus but will continue to quarantine after having close contact last weekend with an infected person, his office said Saturday.
IOWA Des Moines: Long-term care facilities in Iowa continue to see additional outbreaks. As of 10 a.m. Saturday, 153 facilities had coronavirus outbreaks, according to the state’s website. Last week, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced that there were 120 facilities with outbreaks.
KANSAS Lawrence: A study that tests for parts of the coronavirus in sewage is giving public health workers advance notice of virus surges. The Lawrence Journal-World reported that the city has been taking weekly sewage samples at both of its wastewater treatment plants to test for components of the virus shed in feces as part of a study contracted through the University of Kansas School of Engineering.
KENTUCKY Frankfort: Gov. Andy Beshear on Saturday announced 2,437 new cases of COVID-19 across Kentucky and 14 additional deaths, lifting the case total to 174,182 and the death toll to 1,885.
LOUISIANA Baton Rouge: The U.S. Supreme Court is for now staying out of a dispute involving the state and a Baton Rouge-area pastor charged with violating state coronavirus restrictions by repeatedly holding large church services.
MAINE Portland: A memorial has been set up at Longfellow Square to honor lives lost to COVID-19.
MARYLAND Hagerstown: Washington County Public School students will continue virtual learning into 2021. District officials last week updated the “Return to Learn” plan in response to the continued rise of COVID-19 cases in Washington County, pushing back the date for in-person classes to resume by nearly a month and into next year.
MASSACHUSETTS Boston: A shuttered mall is being considered as a site to hold jury trials when they resume early next year. The state Trial Court’s Chief Justice Paula Carey in a letter to Berkshire District Attorney Andrea Harrington said The Berkshire Mall in Lanesborough is a possible location for trials.
MICHIGAN Sandusky: A Big Boy restaurant in Michigan’s Thumb region has lost its name after the owners refused to stop indoor dining as part of statewide restrictions to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Customers were greeted Friday with Sandusky Diner instead of Sandusky Big Boy, the name for 35 years. The company that grants franchises took action.
MINNESOTA St. Cloud: The state reported far fewer coronavirus cases in the past week, adding 41,071 new cases through Friday. That’s down 12.5% from the previous week’s total of 46,924, according to a USA TODAY analysis compiled Sunday.
MISSISSIPPI Pearlington: A Gulf Coast science museum is limiting hours and planning to close for a few months because of the coronavirus pandemic. The Sun Herald reported that Infinity Science Center in Hancock County will be open on the weekends only in December. It will close completely from Jan. 1 through March.
MISSOURI St. Louis: Researchers at St. Louis University said preliminary evidence from a study suggests how effective masks can be, St. Louis Public Radio reported. Epidemiologists at the university said the rate of coronavirus cases significantly decreased in St. Louis and St. Louis County after government officials in July began requiring people to wear masks in public.
MONTANA Kalispell: A lawsuit against a long-term care facility in Whitefish has been amended to add claims that it was part of a multistate network of facilities that enriched corporate owners while residents received negligent care.
NEBRASKA Lincoln: More employees of the Nebraska prison system have tested positive for the coronavirus. The Nebraska Department of Correctional Services said in a statement Saturday night that four staff members had tested positive.
NEVADA Las Vegas: The city welcomed nearly 1.9 million tourists in October, a greater total than September but only about half the
3.7 million it played host to throughout the month in 2019, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority reported last week.
NEW HAMPSHIRE Concord: The New Hampshire Food Bank is holding 19 drive-through mobile food pantries during December across the state to meet growing demand during the coronavirus pandemic.
NEW JERSEY Newark: A convicted sex offender serving 19 years for traveling to Thailand and molesting young boys is among inmates seeking early release from a New Jersey prison that has experienced a COVID-19 outbreak.
NEW MEXICO Albuquerque: New Mexico’s daily count of confirmed COVID-19 cases has been trending down over recent days from the record highs reported earlier this month, but nearly every county remained deep in the red zone Friday as the state was just days away from launching its new “red to green” system for reopening.
NEW YORK Buffalo: Coronavirus cases continued climbing Friday in New York and hospitalizations rose even as the state recorded a record high in testing. Western New York’s positivity rate spiked to a seven-day average of 6.28%, outpacing other parts of the state, according to figures released by the state.
NORTH CAROLINA Fayetteville: The threat of COVID-19 is changing the way the holidays will be celebrated across the Cape Fear region. Although concerns of public safety have led to the shelving of several annual traditions in the region, several organizers are planning to adapt. In some cases, technology will blend with tradition. In others, social distancing and adjustments to holiday interaction (quick hint: holiday hugs and sitting on Santa’s lap are definitely out of fashion this year) have been necessary.
NORTH DAKOTA Bismarck: North Dakota has tens of thousands of COVID-19 antibody tests that still await a plan for their use, months after the state acquired them.
OHIO Columbus: The oldest inmate on Ohio’s death row has died, and a prison spokesperson said it was likely because of the coronavirus. James Frazier, 79, died Nov. 19 at the prison system’s Franklin Medical Center in Columbus, according to Cleveland.com.
OKLAHOMA Oklahoma City: State health officials reported 1,721 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases Sunday, and 19 more deaths linked to the disease caused by the coronavirus.
OREGON Salem: An Oregon hospital has placed a nurse on administrative leave after she posted a video on social media in which she said she does not follow safety directives meant to prevent the spread of COVID-19 when she is not at work.
PENNSYLVANIA Erie: COVID-19 brought about a 31⁄2-month spring closure to the Erie Zoo, forced cancellation of the annual Zoo Parade, led to layoffs and furloughs, and put on hold a couple of new animal exhibit projects earmarked for completion later this year.
RHODE ISLAND Providence: A staterun psychiatric hospital has suspended all medical staff vacation in response to a rising number of coronavirus cases among patients and workers.
SOUTH CAROLINA Columbia: The new rapid-result coronavirus tests promised to South Carolina schools by Gov. Henry McMaster should be at some districts by the start of school this week, education officials said.
SOUTH DAKOTA Rapid City: The City Council will consider a mask mandate at a special session meeting on Monday. The council will consider choosing between two ordinances and a resolution requiring face coverings, The Rapid City Journal reported.
TENNESSEE Nashville: The Nashville Metro Public Health Department reported 824 new COVID-19 cases in the last 24 hours on Sunday. There are 2,900 active cases in Davidson County. No new deaths have been reported in the last 24 hours.
TEXAS San Antonio: The surging coronavirus continued to strain hospitals in Texas as some hard-hit parts of the state remained under curfews aimed at stemming the spread of COVID-19 over the holiday weekend.
UTAH Salt Lake City: Hospitalizations in Utah set a record Saturday, with 573 coronavirus patients hospitalized in the state. In addition, The Salt Lake Tribune reported 2,043 newly confirmed cases Saturday, which is lower than usual likely because of the Thanksgiving holiday.
VERMONT Montpelier: The Vermont Health Department is urging people who attended services at the New Hope Bible Church in Irasburg on Nov. 22 to get tested for the coronavirus. At least one person who attended services that day was infectious, officials said.
VIRGINIA Fort Lee: It was a traditional Thanksgiving, just not the usual one. The COVID-19 pandemic forced a reboot of the annual meal at Fort Lee. The guest list was pared down considerably, with no family members or civilians at the table. The dinner times were staggered, and the tables and chairs were spaced 6 feet further from each other than in previous years.
WASHINGTON Spokane: Health officials in rural communities in the state are worried that Thanksgiving gatherings could take the COVID-19 pandemic from bad to worse and, in some places, overwhelm already strained health systems.
WEST VIRGINIA Charleston: The governing body for high school sports in West Virginia has canceled the state football championship games because of the pandemic and instead declared winners in each class.
WISCONSIN Milwaukee: Nearly 300 nursing home residents in Wisconsin died from COVID-19 in the most recent month, and The Journal Sentinel reported that’s more than 10 times the previous month.
WYOMING Laramie: A high school teacher has received a national award for supporting students during the pandemic who struggle with attention and learning.