Happy Friday, Minnesota! Here’s some key COVID-19 news as well as the latest developments in the killing of George Floyd, that’ll help you stay informed. First, weather.

A break from the 90-degree heat this weekend. A cool front finally sweeps our steamy and stormy air mass today, bringing highs in the 70s and 80s back in Minnesota. Some spotty showers and storms are likely on Saturday, but we’ll get our nice, sunny day later in the weekend. More on the Updraft.

Majority of Minnesota families say they want to send kids back to school. That’s according to a new survey from the state Education Department, although the results are just a sampling — and hardly scientific and not representative of the K-12 population in Minnesota. Over 64 percent of families who took the survey said they had a bad experience with distance learning and want schools to resume in-person classes in the fall.

How were more than 7,000 Guard members mobilized for the biggest mission in its history? Guard leader recalls thinking, “'Whoa, wait a second here, sir.” It was the Minnesota National Guard’s largest deployment since World War II, and it occurred with remarkable speed and, fortunately, few injuries or incidents. The Guard’s leader, Maj. Gen. Jon Jensen, offered the most detailed account yet Thursday of the hurried mission to help contain Twin Cities riots in late May and early June. "The first time the governor said to me full mobilization, I was like 'Whoa, wait a second here, sir.’ I said: ‘Let's walk through exactly what you just told me,’" Jensen said.

The fact that Floyd could talk while being knelt on doesn’t mean he could breathe, experts say. As George Floyd repeatedly pleaded “I can’t breathe,” some of the officers at the scene pointed out he was able to speak. Derek Chauvin even told Floyd it takes “a lot of oxygen” to talk. That reaction is dangerously wrong, medical experts say, adding that a person can still utter words, even if they can't inhale enough breath. 

Minnesota’s daily COVID-19 cases continue to rise recently. State health officials yesterday reported 589 new cases of COVID-19 — the highest number since early June. The new case count brings the total since the pandemic arrived in Minnesota to over 40,000 cases. The overall trend of new daily cases has been upward for the past two weeks.  

Here are the latest coronavirus statistics in Minnesota:

• 40,163 cases confirmed (589 new) via 705,440 tests

• 1,490 deaths (five new)

• 4,305 cases requiring hospitalization

• 251 people remain hospitalized; 116 in intensive care

• 35,193 patients no longer needing isolation

—  Jiwon Choi, MPR News | @ChoiGEE1