Nov. 17, 2020 Warmup ahead. Skies are clouding up tonight. Lows will be in the lower 20s north to the lower 30s south. Tomorrow will be partly sunny with highs in the upper 30s in northern Minnesota to upper 50s south. Expect new COVID-19 restrictions tomorrow, Gov. Walz says. During a press call today, the governor indicated that the new rules would include restrictions on youth sports. Nearly 6,000 new COVID-19 cases reported today, along with record new hospitalizations. The latest reported new hospital cases, at 343, is nearly 20 percent higher than the previous daily record set last week. The most recent numbers also indicate that more than a quarter of all hospital patients in Minnesota are now being treated for COVID-19. State health officials are also reporting 26 additional deaths, a dozen of them among long-term care residents. 12 of 17 members of an environmental justice group that advises the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency have resigned over the agency's approval of a key permit for the Line 3 pipeline replacement project. In a letter delivered Monday to Commissioner Laura Bishop, the members wrote that they are submitting their “collective and public resignation” because they “cannot continue to legitimize and provide cover for the MPCA’s war on Black and brown people.” You can get more of the latest news, in just a few minutes, via the Minnesota Today podcast. — Tim Nelson | MPR News |