| THE BIG STORY
Things are getting really bad in New York The state of New York has now recorded more than 10 times as many coronavirus cases as any other US state with a little over 26,000 as of this morning. It’s a massive number even on a global scale — if New York was a country, it would have the seventh most cases in the world, right after Iran. A big part of this is testing: New York has scaled up its system and can now run more than 16,000 tests per day. But the numbers are still terrible, and hospitals are being put under severe strain. The outbreak in New York state is now expected to peak in the next 14–21 days, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said yesterday, and when it does the hospital system will be completely overwhelmed. “The apex is higher than we thought and the apex is sooner than we thought. And that is a bad combination of facts," he said.
Efforts are now being made to limit the spread of the virus from the state of New York to the rest of the country. Yesterday the White House said anyone who leaves New York, or left recently, should quarantine themselves for two weeks in their new location.
STAYING ON TOP OF THIS Prince Charles has tested positive for the coronavirus
The heir to the British throne, aged 71, is in good health and has shown only mild symptoms, a statement from the royal family said. His wife Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, has tested negative, but both are now in isolation at a palace in Scotland.
Charles, the statement said, “remains in good health and has been working from home throughout the last few days,” which is relatable. “It is not possible to ascertain from whom the Prince caught the virus owing to the high number of engagements he carried out in his public role during recent weeks," which is less relatable.
Buckingham Palace said the Queen remains in good health.
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SNAPSHOTS Data now shows the coronavirus is causing serious harm to a large number of young people. Early numbers from China led many to believe the young would not be affected, but that no longer seems to be the case.
Someone tested positive for the coronavirus after attending a “coronavirus party” in Kentucky. "We should forgive this person, but no more of these anywhere — statewide — for any reason," the governor of Kentucky said.
India went into a full lockdown yesterday. “This is the only path we have in front of us,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a televised address. “We cannot leave our houses no matter what.”
RIP, Dezann Romain. The 36-year old Brooklyn school principal is one of the hundreds of New Yorkers who have lost their lives to the virus. “She was a beacon for so many,” one friend said.
Dezann Romain (via Brooklyn Democracy Academy) LET'S HEAR IT FOR THE NURSES This crisis has many heroes
We’ll never have enough words to describe how thankful we are to the nurses, doctors and EMTs who are putting their lives on the line every day, working themselves to exhaustion in the process, to keep our medical system running. There should be statues of them built in parks when this is all over.
But in the meantime, we can marvel at their social media skills. Here’s 19 wonderful posts from frontline medical workers who are maintaining their sense of humor, and dance skills, while healing the sick in a time of crisis.
Yifan Wu for BuzzFeed News BE THOUGHTFUL AT THE GROCERY A lesson from the people of Wuhan
Tricia Wang studied how the everyday citizens of Wuhan responded to the coronavirus outbreak, and found a model that should be replicated across the world.
Residents turned to neighborhood groups online as the backbone for a new kind of social organization. “They shared uplifting quotes, memes, home exercise regimes, and recipes, but also asked their neighbors to go out and buy food or pick up medicine for them, a way of limiting group exposure,” Wang writes. “When an elderly woman without a smartphone told her neighbor that she had run out of food, the neighbor posted to the group and her people donated portions of their groceries.”
These kinds of networks are springing up across the US. Want to set up or join one of these groups for your neighborhood? The article ends with a how-to guide.
“Many of us keep in touch with friends and colleagues across the globe but have never really gotten to know the people on our street,” Wang writes. “Hyperlocal groups create an opportunity to find commonality with those who live within walking distance, the people who most need your help and who are in the best position to help you.”
There’s never been a better time to love your neighbor,
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