Coachella Valley coronavirus news and info | Thursday evening, April 23

By
Casey Dolan
-
(?: Sue Farris)

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.

As of 1 pm Thursday, Riverside County officials have confirmed:

  • 3,218 people have tested positive for COVID-19.    
  • 100 people are confirmed to have died in the county from the coronavirus.  
  • There are currently 229 confirmed cases hospitalized, with 84 of them in the ICU.
  • There have been 904 official recovered cases in the county.

As of 2 pm Thursday, San Bernardino County has confirmed 1,608 cases of COVID-19.  There have been 77 deaths in San Bernardino County.

As of 5 pm Thursday, there have been 39,288 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in California.  There have been 1,523 confirmed deaths in the state.

Yesterday was the deadliest day for COVID-19 in California.  115 people lost their lives to the virus:

Nationally, it’s still to early to tell if cases of coronavirus have peaked:

Sens. Mitt Romney and Kyrsten Sinema are raising alarms that the federal government is “behind the curve” in tallying the numbers and the scope of the coronavirus’s spread in the United States and are pressing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to quickly devise a real-time national system for tracking the pandemic.  “It’s very hard to make clear-eyed decisions without full data on where the disease exists,” Romney told Politico.

The numbers are increasing everyday.  They are not just numbers.  They are people.  The individual stories are heartbreaking:

Cal/OSHA is investigating the coronavirus-related death of an employee at SunDate, a date packing facility in Coachella. A spokesman for the agency told the Desert Sun the investigation will “determine the work-related nature of the incident and identify any violations of workplace safety and health regulations.”

The University of Washington has built models to project when states might be able to lift stay-at-home orders and ease social distancing restrictions as long as containment measures stay in in place. They project California could start rolling back restrictions on May 17, which is earlier than most states. Other states – including Arizona, Florida, and Georgia –  are projected to have to wait until June 8.

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order on Thursday that prevents debt collectors from garnishing federal stimulus funds from most Californians.  The order doesn’t apply to people who owe child support or alimony:

The House of Representatives passed a nearly $500 billion aid package.  The bill includes $310 billion to replenish a small business loan package that quickly ran out and seemed to favor large corporations rather than actual mom and pops (before some companies got so much bad press, they decided to give it back). There is also $60 billion for a separate small business emergency loan and grant program, $75 billion for hospitals and health-care providers, and $25 billion for a new coronavirus testing program:

Lawmakers were required to be present to vote, which meant Congressman Raul Ruiz had to fly to Washington DC.  He documented the trips with a few pics on Twitter:

Meanwhile, in Washington DC:

And now, and I can’t believe this has to be posted, a public service announcement regarding the above video:

 

Augustine Casino laid off about 70 employees and temporarily furloughed around 210 more.  The General Manager of the casino says the layoffs were primarily in the table games and buffet departments, which are two departments that are not expected to operate the way they did prior to the pandemic.

Those looking to view the Palm Springs City Council’s meeting tonight can do so on the city’s website:

Tune in tonight at 6 p.m. for an update on our current situation as a city and discuss what steps we are going to take…

Posted by Palm Springs Police Department, CA on Thursday, April 23, 2020

The Indio Police Department passed along a resource for survivors of domestic violence.  They ask that you share this information to anyone you may know someone in need of help.

As we continue through this challenging time, we know there are people in our communities who don't feel safe in their…

Posted by Indio Police Department on Thursday, April 23, 2020

The “Rancho Mirage Food Access Program” was passed by the city in March and provided  $5,000 to $8,000 in one-time assistance to city eateries that would stay open through May 31.  As the Desert Sun reports, 35 food service businesses have taken part.  During the first week of the program ending on April 3, those restaurants had sold over 14,000 meals.

Thinking about takeout?  Here are some possibilities in Rancho Mirage:

Let us take care of dinner tonight. ? Our Veal Piccata is sautéed in lemon, butter, garlic and capers with a white wine sauce.? Order Norma's for curbside pickup: 760.834.8738.??

Posted by Norma's Italian Kitchen on Sunday, April 19, 2020

Rejoice!Finally, you can enjoy REAL SHOYU RAMEN TOKYO STYLE at home!Ramen kit with Japanese ramen noodle, Shoyu (soy…

Posted by Shabu Shabu Zen and Sake Bar on Wednesday, April 8, 2020

View this post on Instagram

Thank you to everyone who ordered dinner last night! We still have dinners available for tonight! Click the link in our bio to see the menu Call to order at 760-568-9321 With your order you will receive a Palm Springs Life Magazine!

A post shared by Wally's Desert Turtle (@wallysturtle) on

That’s all for this evening. Stay safe. Stay smart. Stay home.

Thank you for your continued support of Cactus Hugs.

Important information:

Congressman Raul Ruiz has posted a list of local resources and information.

The Washington Post offers plenty of ways that you can help during the coronavirus pandemic.

If you see someone price gouging, there is now a number for that.

The New York Times has an interactive map where you can track every coronavirus case in the United States.

The Washington Post is out with a guide to what you should know about the coronavirus.

Here is a memo by the Department of Homeland security identifying critical infrastructure workers.

The United Way of the Desert has assembled a nice list of information and resources available during the coronavirus here.

These are scary and anxious times.  Be safe and kind to each other out there and, please, remember to wash your hands.

Anything we missed? Let us know about it.

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