There are over 2,647,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, around the world and over 4,482,434 have been tested in the United States. The global total number of deaths stands at 184,268. Baltimore-based Johns Hopkins University has been keeping up-to-date information through an interactive map.
Virginia now has 10,266 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 1,659 people hospitalized, 349 deaths and 60,788 people tested. Fairfax has the highest total number of cases, with 2,256 to date, with 405 hospitalized and 66 deaths. Arlington has reported 663 cases with 116 hospitalized and 24 deaths. Alexandria has 474 cases with 65 hospitalized and 12 deaths. Loudoun County has 475 cases with 61 hospitalized and nine deaths, and Prince William County has 1,075 cases (including Manassas and Manassas City), with 122 hospitalized and 18 deaths. You can keep up with the commonwealth’s daily updates here. (Virginia Department of Health)
Local
The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, stands at 28,285 across the DMV on Thursday. Maryland still tallies in with the most cases at 14,788, followed by Virginia with 10,266 and Washington, DC with 3,210. The death toll is totaled at 1,185 for the region, with 705 in Maryland, 349 in Virginia and 127 in DC. (The Washington Post)
Local
WMATA has decided to extend this summer’s planned shutdown to nine stations, including everything west of Ballston. The shutdown, which will begin on Memorial Day, May 25, and end on Labor Day, Sept. 7, means there will be no Silver Line service for just over three months, and will still close the originally planned stations: Vienna, Dunn Loring and East Falls Church. (The Washington Post)
Local
Nearly 50 large Northern Virginia businesses have filed notices with the Virginia Employment Commission indicating they have laid off employees since March 1, or plan to do so. The companies have all reported more than 50 layoffs, including 301 by a British-based company in McLean, large golf courses and more. To see a list of the companies and their reported layoffs, check here. (Inside NoVA)
Local
The DMV has the cleanest air it has had in 25 years thanks to citizens staying at home and driving less. The drop in pollution mirrors other localities and countries around the world, where the pandemic has brought a majority of vehicles off of the roads. In the DMV, traffic has dropped an estimated 50%, and electricity demand has dropped 7%. (The Washington Post)
Local
Maribeth Luftglass, the longtime information technology chief of Fairfax County Public Schools, is resigning after over 20 years of service, and the county’s two botched attempts at moving learning online. The district has made the decision to move away from its original software system, Blackboard, and temporarily cancel face-to-face online instruction for the time being. (The Washington Post)
Local
United Airlines is pivoting from passenger-only flights to cargo-only flights at Dulles International Airport. Before the pandemic began, United hadn’t flown cargo-only plans since 2000, but in the last month, the company has flown more than 20 passenger-free overseas flights totaling 160,000 pounds of cargo to Dulles. Across its network, United has flown 560 cargo-only flights, carrying 9,350 tons of goods, since March 19. (WTOP)
Local
Inova Health System in NoVA is laying off 427 workers over the next two weeks. According to the organization, all of the workers are “non-clinical” employees, with many of them in management positions, and the layoffs will not impact the region’s hospitals’ abilities to treat COVID-19. (The Washington Post)
Local
Wondering if residents in your area are following social distancing guidelines? This new interactive map shows which ones are following and which ones are not. (WTOP)
Regional
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan and DC Mayor Muriel E. Bowser have all announced plans to begin antibody testing next month to detect if people have been exposed and have some level of immunity to COVID-19. The leaders plan to take collective steps to lift restrictions once testing begins. (The Washington Post)
Regional
Wearing masks and sitting far apart from each other, Virginia lawmakers went to work in Richmond on Wednesday, where the House Delegates met under a tent outside of the State Capital building, and the senators gathered a few miles away at the Science Museum of Virginia. Lawmakers agreed to freeze more than $2 billion on new spending, and killed Northam’s plan to reschedule local elections (which are now scheduled for May 5) to November. The elections could still be delayed. (WTOP)
Regional
Washington, DC’s rate of COVID-19 deaths is 127, a per capita rate of 18.6 per 100,000 residents, making it the highest in the DMV, according to an analysis conducted by The Washington Post. On Wednesday, 10 of the 15 announced deaths were from wards 5, 7 and 8, the poorest and most heavily African American areas of the city. (The Washington Post)
National
On Wednesday, President Trump signed a temporary 60-day ban on immigration, with broad exceptions. The order, which takes effect Thursday, will halt all employment-based immigration visas as well as family-based categories for parents and siblings. It does not apply to immigrants who already are living and working in the United States and are seeking to become legal permanent residents. Medical professionals, farmworkers and others who enter on temporary “nonimmigrant” visas are unaffected, and the suspension also exempts the spouses and underage children of U.S. citizens, among other carve-outs,” according to The Washington Post. (The Washington Post)
National
Another weekly unemployment report will be released today, with an estimated 26 million people having already filed for unemployment benefits in the five weeks since the U.S. coronavirus outbreak began. About one in six American workers have now lost their jobs since mid-March, and economists have forecast unemployment rates of up to 20% in April. (WTOP)
The spread of COVID-19 continues to impact the Northern Virginia region on a daily basis. If you’re looking for ways to stay entertained at home, check out our Things to Do page, and stay up to date by subscribing to our weekly newsletters.
