Good Monday morning. Mostly cloudy with a slight chance of rain showers, mainly during the morning, then partly cloudy in the afternoon. Highs in the lower 60s, while in the southwest temperatures could reach upper 60s. More on this week's weather on Updraft The coronavirus pandemic has now killed at least 1 million people worldwide. That's according to a tally maintained by Johns Hopkins University. This sobering milestone was reached just nine months after the first reported fatality in China last January. And public health experts believe the actual toll – the recorded deaths plus the unrecorded deaths – is much higher . What's more, in the five worst-off countries, the trend line remains worrisome. The United States currently leads the world in terms of both total number of dead and total number of infected over the course of the pandemic. (NPR)
In Minnesota: Weddings, funerals and other social gatherings are great ways to reconnect with friends and family. But in the COVID-19 era, they can also be an invitation to spread the virus.
Outbreaks are being driven largely now by formal and informal get-togethers among friends, families and co-workers who are not staying vigilant against the disease, state officials say.
Weddings have accounted for 37 outbreaks. One that included an outdoor reception left two people hospitalized with the disease. Thirty-nine cases have now been traced to a Martin County funeral, with one person hospitalized, Ehresmann said Monday. “One event can affect so many people."
The state is also seeing more cases among working-age Minnesotans 20 to 40 years old. “You could be exposing a colleague who could get very sick,” Ehresmann cautioned as she implored people to socially distance, wear masks in indoor gathering spaces and stay home if they don’t feel well.
Here are Minnesota’s current COVID-19 statistics:
- 2015 deaths
- 97,638 positive cases, 87,330 off isolation
- 2,003,115 tests, 1,397,865 people tested
In some Minnesota towns, booya is as sure of a sign of fall as changing leaves and cooler temperatures. It’s an event and a food: A thick, hearty stew made from a variety of meats, vegetables and spices in a giant kettle, often over an open fire. It’s a fundraiser, a community event — and, in Hackensack, a way to connect at a time when people are working hard to stay apart.
Last year, the annual booya in Hackensack, Minn, population 300, drew 200 people. But when COVID-19 hit, Hackensack's booya makers almost canceled this year's festival. Almost
Instead, they decided to make it a drive-through event — and still managed to draw a crowd last Friday. -- Kirsti Marohn, MPR News
On Monday, incumbent Democratic Rep. Angie Craig sued to keep the election for the 2nd District that she represents in November.
The death of Adam Weeks, a candidate from a Legal Marijuana Now Party, threw the race in doubt last week. A state law says when a vacancy on the ballot occurs so close to the election, the contest is postponed until the following February.
But Craig argues that federal law requires that congressional elections be held in November and a postponement isn’t allowed. She said the district’s voters would be deprived representation for at least a month after the next Congress is sworn in come January.
Now to the Senate: In an interview with MPR News host Tom Crann Monday, U.S. Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minnesota) said confirming Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court “threatens to turn upside-down the lives of Minnesotans by ending the Affordable Care Act.” Smith is running against Republican Jason Lewis, who supports a Supreme Court confirmation before the election and “judges like Amy Coney Barrett who believe in protecting life, liberty and property.” Lewis is scheduled to join Crann on All Things Considered Tuesday, and both candidates will debate during Politics Friday this week.
Republicans pushed Monday for investigations and a freeze in absentee voting amid allegations of ballot fraud in Minneapolis that were lodged through videos captured by a conservative outlet known for shady tactics. -- Brian Bakst, MPR News
It's debate night tonight. Trump and Biden meet in their first presidential debate. Here is a guide on key questions going into it. Tune into MPR News tonight at 8 p.m. to listen to live coverage, or watch with us on MPRnews.org.
~ Matt Mikus, MPR News |
