Aug. 3, 2020
Quiet and comfy Tuesday. Tomorrow will be slightly warmer than Monday, with highs in the 70s and mostly sunny skies across Minnesota. The Twin Cities metro area may see some clouds and a light southwest breeze in the afternoon. More on the Updraft weather blog. U of M’s Osterholm warns of potential for outbreak from Sturgis rally. The motorcycle rally, which starts this Friday in neighboring South Dakota , could lead to a major outbreak in the coming weeks, says U of M epidemiologist Michael Osterholm. The rally is expected to draw more than 250,000 riders and their friends from around the U.S. and it will feature some high-risk factors, including a surge of possibly hundreds of thousands of people — many of them older — packing into a relatively small town. Osterholm was on MPR News this morning to discuss the potential outbreak, vaccine development, the possibility of additional lockdowns and more. Listen to that conversation on MPR News with Kerri Miller. Minnesota’s daily new case count is now as high as the peak in May; ICU cases highest in 5 weeks . Minnesota reported two more deaths from COVID-19 while new cases remain on the upswing, including 622 reported Monday. While total current hospitalizations (302) were flat from Sunday, the count of those in the ICU (153) rose to a level not seen in five weeks. Analysis: Several toss-up states have shifted in Biden’s favor in the past weeks. The latest NPR analysis of the Electoral College shows several swing or toss-up states, including Florida, now leaning toward Joe Biden. The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee now has a 297-170 advantage over President Trump with exactly three months to go until Election Day. Check out this map and analysis of where each state stands. Have questions about the upcoming election? Ask MPR News! — Jiwon Choi, MPR News | @ChoiGEE1 | 