Coronavirus live updates: Here’s what to know in South Florida on August 8
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.
Sunshine Health Orange Bowl Family, Fun & Fit Day
3 p.m.: The Orange Bowl Committee, along with sponsors Sunshine Health and PNC Bank and The Pantry of Broward held its Eighth annual Sunshine Health Orange Bowl Family, Fun & Fit Day on Saturday morning as a drive-thru.
The Fun & Fit Day, at Orange Bowl Field at Carter Park in Fort Lauderdale also served as a back to school and, in keeping with the COVID-19 pandemic, a food distribution event, too.
“We felt it extremely important to find a way to provide these services and supplies despite the challenges 2020 is presenting,” said Orange Bowl Committee President and Chair Jeff Rubin in a statement. “We have adapted the event to ensure everyone’s safety, while continuing to meet the needs of those in the community. We look forward to this annual event because of the opportunity to engage South Florida families and help children prepare for the upcoming school year.”
After a six day dip, Florida adds 8,502 new COVID-19 cases and 182 deaths
11:30 a.m.: Florida’s Department of Health on Saturday confirmed 8,502 additional cases of COVID-19, pushing the state’s known total to 526,577. There were also 182 Florida resident deaths announced, bringing the statewide resident death toll to 8,109.
Both figures are up over Friday’s numbers: 816 more cases reported Saturday compared to Friday when 7,686 were confirmed. And there were two more deaths than Friday’s 180.
Read the story here.
It is the state’s largest PPP loan scheme. Three from South Florida have been charged
9 a.m.: Three South Florida people have been charged with collaborating in a $24 million loan scheme to bilk a federal program meant to aid businesses ailing from the coronavirus pandemic, authorities said. It is the state’s largest alleged fraud case involving the Small Business Administration’s relief program.
The defendants, arrested this week and granted bonds in Fort Lauderdale federal court, are accused of submitting 90 loan applications to the SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program that Congress authorized after the virus struck the country in March. The SBA guaranteed more than $17 million in bank-issued loans to the defendants and other co-conspirators, according to FBI criminal complaints filed by the U.S. Attorney Office against each of them.
Read the story here.
Coronavirus won’t stop Souls to the Polls in Florida — but it will look different
8:30 a.m.: For years, South Florida’s Black churches have gathered their flocks on the Sunday before Election Day and led them to the polls on the final day of early voting.
The coronavirus pandemic won’t change that. But it will change how and when “Souls to the Polls” takes place in a region with one of the worst outbreaks in the country.
Black faith leaders are encouraging parishioners to vote on either Sunday before the primary on Aug. 18. And instead of lining up to vote inside polling places, some churches are encouraging their members to drive this Sunday to early voting centers and deposit mail ballots at outdoor drop boxes instead of sending them through the U.S. Postal Service.
Read the story here.
‘We’re in a slight, slow decline.’ COVID burden lessens at Miami-Dade hospitals
8 a.m.: What started as glimmers of hope a week ago has strengthened into a more consistent trend of a slowly declining number of COVID patients at Miami-Dade County hospitals, signaling the worst could be over, at least for now, in Florida’s coronavirus epicenter.
The hardest-hit county has made progress on multiple fronts since a mid-June surge heightened to a blistering July that brought Miami’s largest hospitals to capacity and overwhelmed Florida’s testing system.
State officials are starting to pivot to rapid tests for symptomatic people, a way around a testing backlog that has caused weeks-long wait times for results. Meanwhile, the number of COVID patients in Miami-Dade hospitals fell by more than 400 in the last two weeks.
Miami-Dade: COVID patient volume has dropped by more than 400 in the last two weeks. ICUs slowly ticking down too, though might take a while. Currently at 463 out of 1,785 patients.
Five-day avg for Fire Rescue calls: 120
14-day avg for positivity: 16%https://t.co/1tmatNHZct pic.twitter.com/PTwriaZOHf— Ben Conarck (@conarck) August 7, 2020
Read the story here.
A pill that may lessen COVID-related lung damage. Miami will be first in U.S. to test it
7:55 a.m.: The research center at Westchester General Hospital in Coral Terrace will be the first in the country to test a possible COVID-19 treatment on humans this August.
The Miami hospital is on its way to enroll patients to test Ifenprodil, a pill developed in the 1970s to treat blood circulation disorders that may alleviate some COVID-19 side-effects in the lungs.
The drug, which was tested on a coronavirus patient overseas for the first time Wednesday, may reduce the severity and duration of COVID-19 infections, according to Algernon Pharmaceuticals, a Canadian drug repurposing company that investigates pre-approved drugs for new disease applications and is now leading Ifenprodil’s COVID-19 testing.
Read the story here.
CATCH UP TO START THE DAY
7:50 a.m.: Here are the coronavirus headlines to catch you up on what’s happening around South Florida and the state as Saturday begins.
▪ Teenager surprises front-line nurses who lost home, pets in a fire with rent-free apartment
▪ COVID-19 numbers rise as Florida adds 7,686 cases and 180 deaths. Total now over 8,000.
▪ Shevrin Jones tried to donate plasma after getting COVID-19. FDA policy turned him away.
