Coachella Valley coronavirus news and info | Thursday, August 13

By
Casey Dolan
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Cactus Hugs has been tracking local stories about the coronavirus.   For a rundown of all of our updates, click here. Stay safe, stay at a good social distance. Thank you for your continued support of Cactus Hugs. For ways to keep this website going (and free!), click here.

As of 3 pm Thursday, Riverside County officials have confirmed:

  • 44,679 people have officially tested positive for COVID-19.  696 people have been reported positive in the last 24 hours.
  • 879 people are confirmed to have died in the county from the coronavirus. The county reported 26 new deaths in the last 24 hours.

The county notes: “Because of a statewide delay with data collection, the figures displayed for “Confirmed” COVID-19 cases, case rates, positivity rates, doubling time, and number of tests do not accurately reflect the current situation.”

Here’s the latest from the Coachella Valley:

As of 4 pm Thursday, San Bernardino County has confirmed:

  • 38,760 people have officially tested positive for COVID-19.
  • 558 people are confirmed to have died in the county from the coronavirus.

As of 4 pm Thursday, the State of California has confirmed:

        • 597,949  people have official tested positive for COVID-19.
        • 10,800 people are confirmed to have died in the state of CA from the coronavirus.

This fall could be the worst in the history of American public health if people do not do things like wear a mask and practice social distancing, the director of the CDC has warned. Skyrocketing cases of COVID-19 combined with the annual flu season could create the “worst fall” that “we’ve ever had,” he stated.  He later added, “I’m asking you to do four simple things: wear a mask, social distance, wash your hands, and be smart about crowds. If you do those four things it will bring this outbreak down. But, if we don’t do that… this could be the worst fall from a public health perspective we’ve ever had.”

In an effort to flatten the curve and slow the spread of COVID-19 in Riverside County, food banks, food pantries, faith-based organizations, community-based organizations, non-profits, essential businesses residing in Riverside County are eligible to request disposable facial coverings for free distribution to their staff and customers. Requests are filled on a first-come, first-served basis.  You can request masks here.

The Judicial Council of California voted 19-1 to lift the rules protecting people from evictions that had been in place in the stare since April 6. Eviction and foreclosure proceedings will now resume on September 1 unless the state Legislature takes action.  The Desert Sun has a roundup of the rules for evictions around the Coachella Valley.

A new survey by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that almost 41% of respondents are struggling with mental health issues stemming from the coronavirus pandemic and the measures put in place to contain it.  The survey found 31% saying they’d experienced symptoms of anxiety or depression, 26% saying they’d experienced trauma or stressor-related disorder symptoms, 13% saying they’ve started or increased substance use, and 11% saying they’d seriously considered suicide in the last 30 days.

These are stressful times for all of us. Coping with stress will make you, the people you care about, and our desert community stronger. This link has some resources to help with coping and also numbers to call or text if you, or someone you know, feels overwhelmed.

Please, take care of yourself and each other. You are important. You are valued. You are loved. ??

“If they were to shutdown part of this street, these couple lanes out there, put tables out there, I think it’d be great.” Tourists spoke to NBC Palm Springs about potentially closing down parts of Palm Canyon Drive to add tables for restaurant dining.

Facebook said on Tuesday it removed 7 million posts in the second quarter for sharing false information about the novel coronavirus, including content that promoted fake preventative measures and exaggerated cures.  Not sure how much that helps now, since everyone who shared them believes they are true and have moved on to new, even more ridiculous lies and propaganda. 

As the travel industry has been hit especially hard by the pandemic, five major airlines are planning to furlough more than 13,000 California workers in October.  The furloughs will impact everyone from flight attendants to customer service agents to aircraft technicians.

Because, clearly, there is nothing going on they should be addressing right now, Mitch McConnell has sent the Senate home until Labor Day:

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris held a briefing on the coronavirus with science and health officials on Thursday.  During the event, Biden announced that America should institute a 3-month mandatory mask mandate:

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump called into the Fox News Thursday morning, where he admitted to trying to destroy the postal service so mail-in ballots won’t be counted:

Because, it appears, mail-in ballots are very bad, unless they are for him, his family, and his administration:

Dr. Fauci does not appear to be too thrilled with how things are going:

The election is 81 days away:

  • You can register to vote here.  
  • Sign up for updates on your mail-in ballot here.
  • Sign up to be a poll worker in Riverside County here.

Finally…

Stay cool.  Stay safe.  Wear a mask.

Thank you for your continued support of Cactus Hugs.

Anything we missed? Let us know about it.

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