Coronavirus Disinfecting Services : August 2020

Monday 31 August 2020

Experts say COVID-19 cases are slowing down in Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KRON) – Despite the numbers, local experts say, cases here in the Bay Area, and in California are slowing down.

The United States continues to lead the world in the number of coronavirus cases.

Monday, the country, topped the 6-million mark.

In California and the Bay Area, a recent rapid rise in cases from just a few weeks ago appears to be slowing to a brisk crawl.

“I’d say we’re down about 20 percent from the second peak from the wave of this infection. It’s all looking good and we need to keep on doing what we’ve been doing,” Dr. George Rutherford said.

California saw just under 4,200 new cases in the last 24-hours.

In the last two weeks, the state has averaged around 5,000 new cases a day.

Just two weeks ago, the 14-day average was around 10,000.

Deaths also appear to be stabilizing at around 120-to-130 on average for the past two weeks.

Rutherford says the trend is also being seen here in the Bay Area.

The number of cases in the 9-counties have dropped by more than 20-percent in each county.

He says while the news is good, we’re not in the clear, just yet.

“There’s obvious transmissions still going on, but it’s becoming less so, and the trick now is to avoid much of the problems that have been happening in other parts of the country, with colleges coming back into session, and high schools and middle schools coming back into session. That’s going to be the trick to avoiding the third wave,” Rutherford said.

Rutherford credits a committed effort from people to mask up and social distance to lowering the numbers.

“It’s just that simple. If you wear masks, and if you’re around in crowds, give yourself some space. Give yourself 6 feet and you’re going to do fine,” Rutherford said. “Even if you do have a mask on, and you are getting infected, it’s probably going to be less severe.”

While there is no vaccine for COVID-19, there is one for the flu.

Rutherford urges everyone to get a flu shot this year.

He says trying to fight the flu epidemic, in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, would put a serious strain on hospitals.

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San Francisco restaurants struggle to stay open amid coronavirus pandemic

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KRON) – More than half of San Francisco’s store fronts are closed according to the Chamber of Commerce’s latest study.

The pandemic hit the downtown financial district area the hardest, as 84% of its storefronts downtown remain closed and many will not reopen.

Down the street from Jackson Square, on the outskirts of the Financial District you normally see the hustle and bustle of the business district during the day, but ever since the coronavirus it’s turned into a ghost town.

KRON4 employees who help put together these newscasts are some of the few who still return to an office in the city, which has a trickle down effect on the surrounding businesses.

“We’ve been here for 21 years and we’ve been through two recessions before this one and this is like nothing we’ve ever seen before,” Ladle and Leaf owner, Steve Sarver, says the pandemic’s knocking out businesses left and right.

“It has a huge impact on his customer base in San Francisco’s Financial District…where city workers usually stop by for breakfast, lunch or dinner during a normal work week, but now that’s all changed with offices remaining closed,” said Saver.

The owner adds, “Here at the Galleria and throughout the Financial District, it seems like a vast majority of businesses aren’t even open. They’re just waiting or maybe they shut down permanently. We don’t know but most people aren’t going to be able to hang on much longer.”

San Francisco’s Ladle & Leaf location at Crocker Galleria is where the store first opened 21 years ago. It’s one of seven Financial District locations.

Saver explains, “Right now we’re doing about 20 percent of the business we were doing prior to the pandemic and that’s just at this one location. Our other locations are closed and there’s just not a lot of people here.”

The owner adds they’ve also cut their costs, scaled back in staff and are working with their landlords, but making those adjustments will only help if customers continue to come in, something that’s changed from reality to wishful thinking.

The Chamber of Commerce says restaurant sales across the city were down by as much as 84% in July 2020 compared to the previous year.

And the numbers are even more grim for businesses like bars, night clubs, and entertainment facilities.

Meanwhile 84% of all storefronts downtown are now closed and many won’t re-open.

Saver holds on to hope that city leaders will help get the District back on track, “Will business ever be the same in the Financial District? That’s really up to our leaders and I’m counting on the leaders to recognize the vibrancy of San Francisco, they need to figure out how to get people back in the Financial District.”

With more than 1,300 storefronts in the city remaining closed, the number will continue to grow for the duration of the pandemic.

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Firefighters use drones to fight Woodward Fire burning in Marin County

MARIN COUNTY, Calif. (KRON) – Firefighters battling the Woodward Fire in West Marin County hope to increase the containment which is only at 17-percent on Monday night.

The Woodward Fire just got some high tech support to help douse the flames and stop the spread in the national forest.

The fire has been raging for the past two weeks.

Progress has been made, but not as much as they want. Helicopters can’t fly because the air quality is so bad.

Now, firefighters are turning to drones to fight the fire with fire.

It is swift, efficient and helps keep firefighters safe.

This UAS, or unmanned aircraft system, commonly referred to as a drone, is setting backfires in the Point Reyes National Forest as crews attempt to lasso the stubborn Woodward Fire.

“This is the first fire that I’ve been involved with, it’s the first fire the operation has been involved with. He was a little reluctant at first, he’s sold, he wants one on every fire now,” Laura Barrett said.

Laura Barrett is with the air operations branch with the U.S. Forest Service.

The Woodward Fire started August 17 from lightning strikes igniting dry brush.

Evacuations forced many out of their homes in the surrounding areas, wildlife is being threatened, while cooler temperatures have aided in the fight, the rugged thick terrain has not.

Aircraft normally used in these circumstances can’t fly because of the poor air quality.

“The brush here hasn’t burned in nearly 100 years. It is so thick. The drone is not only safer but cheaper. It does work efficiently. At first, we were hesitant, but now we want a lot more,” Barrett said.

Barrett says they hope to pull in some more drones to help out – adding this is a tough fire to beat.

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Hair salons in Contra Costa County begin to reopen indoors

SAN RAMON, Calif. (KRON) – Some indoor services across the region were able to reopen on Monday under new state guidance.

Contra Costa County falls within the state’s purple color coding tier, which means barbershops and hair salons can now allow their customers back inside for service.

These salons and barbershops are happy to be back to work–even more so for places that couldn’t operate outside, but those looking to get their haircut or a color should expect changes.

Customers can once again get their hair styled and cut from inside the comfort of salon Murcel in San Ramon, but the experience features some big changes: clear plastic curtains are draped throughout and sanitizer is everywhere.

Stylist Gail Burg is happy to be back to work, “Customers have told me they felt safer here than they do in a lot of places especially like a grocery store.”

Burg says her salon doesn’t have the ability to serve people outside, so now they’re back to taking all the necessary steps to fend off Covid-19 inside.

“I think this is a pretty safe place to be right now,” Burg said.

Within the salon you’ll find chairs have been blocked off, the waiting area is closed and walk-ins will not be accepted. It’s tough to turn away customers in a time like this but Burg says it’s for safety’s sake.

Of the customers that did come into the salon, they were grateful, “They’re doing everything properly here and as long as I wear my mask and keep my distance and I feel pretty good about it.”

The hope is the numbers won’t spike again,that way more businesses can reopen.

Burg and customers urge the community to keep practicing the health procedures officials have put in place, “Please everybody wear a mask, keep your distance, this can’t keep going on. It just can’t.”

Restrictions have also eased at Contra Costa County’s indoor malls which can also reopen at 25% capacity.

Neighboring counties like Alameda County also fall within the purple color coding tier, but salons and barber shops there are still limited to outdoors.

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Wildfire smoke adds another obstacle for California winemakers

YOLO COUNTY, Calif. (KTXL) — Winemakers have been on alert with the current wildfires still burning in Northern California.

It turns out that destruction of vines is not the worry. Instead, it’s how the heavy smoke might affect the taste of the wine that is produced in fire-ravaged areas.

Wildfire smoke has resulted in air quality warnings but along with people, the smoke is also affecting wine grapes in areas stretching from the Santa Cruz mountains, through Napa and Sonoma counties and into expanding wine regions in Yolo County and beyond.

The phenomena is labeled “wine taint.”

“Ash tray character in the back of your throat that is distinctive of throat taint,” said Dr. Anita Oberholster, a professor of enology and viticulture at the University of California, Davis.

Since winemaking is an art based on complex flavors, the hint of smoke and ash flavors in the final product can be ruinous to the final product.

The frustrating thing is there is no telling how much smokey, phenol-based chemicals grapes absorb through the skin of the fruit. Red grapes are more susceptible.

Even if it can’t be tasted in the grapes themselves, it can show up in the fermenting process and can get stronger as wine ages.

“It definitely makes winemaking a lot trickier,” Oberholster told FOX40.

Oberholster has done extensive field testing since the 2017 fires in Napa and Sonoma counties.

Right now, chemical testing of grapes and fermenting samples have been tried.

There are also various filtering systems that are being developed, which, in turn, can adversely affect a wine’s taste. Other strategies call for enhancing fruity flavors to mask the taint of smoke and protective coatings are being looked at.

“Yes, there are some tools of the trade, some tricks you can do,” Oberholster said. “But there’s really not a 100% cure for what we call ‘smoke taint.’”

California winemakers won’t release wines that turn out to be smoke tainted.

“They won’t release anything that can potentially impact people’s opinion of their labels,” Oberholster explained.

But that can also mean a potential loss of product and profit.

“It’s another potential economic impact on an industry that is already struggling,” Oberholster told FOX40.

There is more research to be done because wildfires aren’t going to be going away in years to come.

Winemakers say a mild smokey taste is not necessarily bad. Those aged in toasted oak barrels have that quality.

Those with a heavy “smoke taint” will likely not pass quality control, so it’s not likely customers will see those bottles on the shelves.

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68-year-old beaten to death in road rage incident along Missouri highway

O’FALLON, Mo. (KTVI) – The Missouri State Highway Patrol and investigators in St. Charles County are asking for the public’s help in locating a person accused of fatally beating a 68-year-old man in a road rage incident.

According to a state police spokesperson, the attack happened around 11:30 a.m. Sunday.

O’Fallon police and state police found the victim, later identified by family as Ron Lawson, unconscious at the scene.

The Winfield, Missouri man was hospitalized and later died from his injuries, state police said.

“I’ve got a little boy that has the same birthday as my dad’s birthday and now I have to celebrate and mourn on my son’s birthday every year because that piece of us is gone,” said Leah Lawson, Ron’s daughter.

Lawson’s family said he was a truck driver and was always safe on the road. They are deeply saddened and asking for the public’s help in finding the suspect.

“The location where he was at is always a busy place. It was on a Sunday morning, Sunday early afternoon,” said Jason Lawson, Ron’s son. “There had to be somebody somewhere that seen something. For my family, please just somebody, please, speak up.”

Jason had planned on marrying in October. Now, the Lawson family has a funeral and a wedding to plan in the next month.

A GoFundMe has been established to help the Lawson family with funeral expenses.

Meanwhile, the managers of the St. Charles County Scanner Facebook page said witnesses sent them pictures of the attacker’s vehicle – a 2019 or 2020 black Dodge 2500 or 3500 diesel truck. The truck was towing a white car trailer with vertical ramps.

Authorities have not released a description of the suspect as of yet.

Witnesses said the attacker left the scene in a 2019 or 2020 black Dodge 2500 or 3500 diesel truck. The truck was towing a white car trailer with vertical ramps. (Missouri State Highway Patrol)

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California Senate extends eviction moratorium set to expire this week

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KRON) – Monday was the last day of the California legislative session and state lawmakers are expected to work late through the night to pass dozens of new laws.

Some in direct response to the pandemic.

California state lawmakers, physically and remotely, gaveled in Monday with 160 bills to get through by midnight.

At the top of their priority list amid the pandemic, an extension to the state’s eviction moratorium set to expire this week.

The State Senate Monday passed a measure 33-2 shielding renters from eviction if they could not pay their rent because of pandemic-related hardship.

“This by no means is a handout, just a hand again, during this crisis, it’s exactly what is needed at this time,” Senator Steven Bradford, D-Gardena, said.

Renters will still owe what they could not pay during the pandemic, they will need to pay 25% of the rent they will owe between now and February, or else they can be evicted.

“But I won’t support the continuation when, if this comes back in January for extension, I will definitely not be supporting it then,” State Senator Andreas Borgeas, R-Fresno, said.

Advocates say lawmakers needed to come up with some sort of solution to avoid leaving up to four million Californians homeless.

“It is my hope we will get the leadership, the so-called leadership in Washington, to step up because this problem has been created by a failure to address a pandemic that has put so many at risk,” State Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson, D-Santa Barbara, said.

Other priorities on the agenda for late Monday night include social justice and police accountability bills.

Some feel the work shouldn’t stop Monday, the Republican Caucus is calling on Governor Newsom to call a special session on other pandemic related problems facing the state.

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Shortage of police officers in Vallejo causes safety concerns

VALLEJO, Calif. (KRON) – The Vallejo police union says that citizens are endangered by the city’s failure to hire police. Specifically, they’re saying there are not enough cops to cover all beats on a regular basis.

The POA says, for ten years the city has had open positions and because the force is consistently shorthanded “there are generally no more than six officers on the street at any given time in a city of over 120-thousand.”

This puts Vallejo well below cities like Oakland and Richmond and the shortage forces officers to work overtime which causes fatigue and “adversely impacts citizen safety.”

“I don’t think because you are tired and overworked that you then not be held accountable for abuse. It’s very significant that officers treat all citizens constitutionally whether they are overworked or not,” Civil Rights attorney John Burris said.

Burris has sued Vallejo police for wrongful death in the police shooting of Sean Monterrosa. He says while more police officers may be needed to patrol the city, understaffing is not an excuse for officers crossing the line and using excessive force.

“It doesn’t allow for unlawful shooting or arrests, and there still should be some accountability,” Burris added.

Vallejo police says recruiting and hiring is a top priority of the new chief. While only 105 of the 122 funded positions are currently filled, 13 candidates are now being reviewed. The city has also received a federal grant meaning they now have funding for eight additional officers. They’ve reached out to the CHP asking for eight officers to help with patrols.

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Napa’s oldest family-owned winery narrowly escapes Hennessy Fire

NAPA, Calif. (KRON) — As the Hennesey Fire grew dangerously close to Napa Valley’s oldest winery on Aug. 18, the Sunseri family nervously watched as flames engulfed surrounding hills.

On Tuesday morning the fire continued to grow and began to burn alongside the eastern portion of the Nichelini Family Winery property located in the Chiles Valley area.

“On Tuesday the winds started picking up and around 11 o’clock in the morning the flames just started becoming a firestorm,” said Phil Suneri, a fourth-generation Nichelini family member said.

“I came down from northern California to be here and work with my crews and defending the properties and working with my cousins in defending this property.”

The fires came within feet of the property which sits along Highway 128 in a very remote hillside area.

In 2017, the family faced a similar situation as the Atlas Fire came close to the winery — just narrowly missing the property.

“There was the Atlas fire and the Atlas peak is only a mile and a half from here,” said Sunseri.

“During the course of the fire and getting it under control the north wind would change to the south and it constantly came back to our ranch and it hit within one mile of this property.”

The winery has since gone through numerous changes in an effort to ensure the 130-year-old property stood any chance against another fire including the removal underbrush and trimming surrounding trees.

“We realized then that our fire was susceptible to these kinds of fires and we started implementing a plan after that fire but formally started in 2019,” said Sunseri.

“We made a plan in 2019 and we got funding from our corporation with limited funds to do the fire safety plan of removing all the fuel within 200 foot radius of all of structures,”

“We finished that in August just in time for this fire.”

The Nichelini Family Winery was started by Anton and Caterina Nichelini after settling into the property as homesteaders in 1884 and by 1918 had grown the property to 32 acres of Zinfandel vineyards.

The historic winery has been able to stand the test of time through the help of Nichelini’s 12 children and has since been carried on by generations of Nicelini family members.

“Family is really important and to know where your roots are … but for the Anton Nichelini heirs and all Nichelini’s plus all of our wine patrons, they can feel the history here,” said Sunseri.

“This property is an irreplaceable asset … we always keep in mind that we have to protect this asset because for us to lose this property makes it impossible for us to rebuild.”

Sunseri tells KRON4 News the winery will go through further renovations to ensure the property can withstand another fire which include an emergency water supply for fire crews to access.

In the winery’s 130-year history it has never missed a harvest and the family is hopeful that this year is no different.

“I think it’s a real tribute to the history of a family and right now with everything we’re going through, family is really really important,” said Sunseri.

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Naomi Osaka walks into US Open wearing Breonna Taylor mask

NEW YORK (KRON) – The 2020 US Open returned to the tennis court on Monday and the 2018 US Open Champion, Naomi Osaka, made quite the statement.

.@naomiosaka walked out in a Breonna Taylor mask for her night match at Arthur Ashe stadium.#USOpen pic.twitter.com/Ubxwst54kl
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 1, 2020

Osaka entered the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center wearing a black mask with the name Breonna Taylor printed in white for viewers at home to see.

Naomi Osaka is wearing a Breonna Taylor mask before her match at the #USOpen pic.twitter.com/jtds1g88C5
— ESPN (@espn) September 1, 2020

Osaka honored the former Louisville EMT who was shot and killed by police in her bed earlier this year.

Taylor along with George Floyd and Jacob Blake, have sparked social justice protests across the nation.

Just one week prior, Osaka joined a number of athletes who protested playing sports to focus on social justice issues.

Osaka stated, “As a black woman I feel as though there are much more important matters at hand that need immediate attention, rather than watching me play tennis.”

pic.twitter.com/miKzgSdGxY
— NaomiOsaka大坂なおみ (@naomiosaka) August 27, 2020

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Los Altos homes evacuated from leaking gas meter explosion

LOS ALTOS, Calif. (BCN) – Crews extinguished a structure fire at a residence in Los Altos
early Monday morning, fire officials said.

Shortly after 3 a.m., Santa Clara County Fire Department responded to reports of an explosion and a fire at a residence on the 1800 block of Grant Park Lane, near Grant Park.

Upon arrival, crews found a fire on the exterior of the residence caused by an actively leaking gas meter.

Officers with the Los Altos Police Department safely evacuated the residents of the home and surrounding homes.

Crews safely clamped the gas line leading to the meter and extinguished the fire in under 40 minutes, fire officials said.

The residence was damaged by the fire, but no injuries were reported and no residents were displaced.

According to Santa Clara Fire Department, the cause of the fire is not considered suspicious and is under investigation in cooperation with Pacific Gas and Electric.

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49ers’ Arik Armstead is using his platform to make sure students receive a quality education

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (KRON) – “Literacy is everything.”

The San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle, Arik Armstead, is focusing on how to make a positive impact for students by promoting reading and literacy.

On Monday, Armstead spoke with reporters about the issues students face on a day-to-day basis.

“Literacy is everything,” Armstead stated. “If you can’t read, you probably can’t read your math problems either. So I think reading is huge. There’s been correlation between reading scores and youth success later in life.”

The defensive tackle went on to discuss the stresses families now face with the pandemic on the forefront and students being left without the tools they need to succeed to get an education.

“With COVID it really multiplies the issues and when you look at, I just mentioned the status of funding or the lack thereof, for students in these communities. You know COVID multiplies that. They’re not able to go to school and get food. They’re not able to go to school and use the technology at the school and everything has become virtual. One of the latest things we did was provide internet and tablets for students so they can continue to work from home.”

Armstead has used his platform and created, The Armstead Academic Project.

According the the Project’s website their mission is to, “Ensure every student, no matter their socioeconomic status, has direct access to a quality education through a positive learning environment and resources needed in order to thrive and be successful.”

The Sacramento native hopes that by starting this foundation he can make a positive impact the Sacramento Public School system by serving our students and providing equality.

Earlier this year, Armstead donated $50,000 to a non profit called Mercy Housing to provide chrome books and internet for Sacramento students.

if you would like to get involved head over to www.arikarmstead91.com.

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Neighbors build fire break to save 2 dozen homes in Bonny Doon

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, Calif. (KRON) – With the fire bearing down on homes in Bonny Doon, a group of friends and neighbors took it upon themselves to create their own fire break.

One person behind the effort estimates their actions saved 25 homes.

Some are calling them the Bald Mountain Brigade – A group of around 25 people who used a tractor and hard work to turn what was once just a mountain bike trail in an unincorporated part of Wilder Ranch State Park into a fire break.

“Initially was hand tools and a garden hose at our neighbors on the top of the hill over there where the fire first came, from there it escalated to OK we saved his house the first time, then the fire was moving his way over to us, the bulk of the homes are kind of back behind. And so from there, it was, get out the tractor, get out the chainsaw and start working on this fire line,” Justin Robinson said.

They estimate that the fire line they cut is a half mile from end to end and the fire came right up to it with the charred trees and ash where the underbrush used to be.

On the other side, the foliage is still green untouched by flames.

But the fire did get very close to homes — One had to be saved three times and eventually lost two outbuildings.

All 25 homes in this area off Smith Grade Road are still standing.

“We don’t know what the fire would’ve done but we stopped it from getting to them yes,” Robinson said.

There are still hot spots that they are keeping an eye on and while Robinson says he knows what they did isn’t encouraged by Cal Fire, they didn’t feel like they could walk away.

“They had fires all over the state, they didn’t have the resources to protect a tiny community like this. Initially, they weren’t here to protect the homes and we were. I know they don’t condone it, we have a lot of vested interest here and we care about our community greatly. It felt like a safe thing to do even though maybe it wasn’t at the time,” Robinson said.

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LIST: Counties reopening salons, gyms in the Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KRON) – Several businesses are allowed to reopen on Monday in the Bay Area following Gov. Gavin Newsom revision of health orders.

The state’s new “Blueprint for a Safer Economy” plan ranks each California county using a colored tier system based on the rate of community spread of coronavirus. Counties are categorized as purple (widespread transmission), red (substantial), orange (moderate), and yellow (minimal).

We’ve listed out what is open in each Bay Area county below.

Alameda County: Purple

Hair salons and barbershops can open indoor with modifications. Nail salons can open outdoors only with modifications. Malls can open indoors with modifications. Gyms can open outdoors only with modifications.

Contra Costa County: Purple

Marin County: Purple

Napa County: Red

Hair salons and barbershops can open indoor with modifications. Nail salons can open indoors with modifications. Malls can open indoors with modifications. Gyms can open indoors with modifications.

Santa Clara County: Purple

San Mateo County: Purple

Santa Cruz: Purple

Solano County: Purple

Sonoma County: Purple

San Francisco: Red

Hair salons and barbershops can open indoor with modifications. Nail salons can open indoors with modifications. Malls can open indoors with modifications. Gyms can open indoors with modifications.

Community members are encouraged to go to covid19.ca.gov to track where their county stands with COVID-19 restrictions.

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KRON4 Morning Buzz: MTV VMA’s honor the life of Chadwick Boseman

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) – Trending on the KRON4 Morning Buzz – Chadwick Boseman passed away on Friday at the young age of 43.

He inspired so many playing a superhero on and off the screen.

The MTV Video Music Awards dedicated the show to Chadwick Boseman on Sunday night.

Boseman was battling colon cancer for four years and never spoke publicly about it.

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Santa Clara County hair salons among first businesses to reopen indoors

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) – Hair salons are among the first businesses to take advantage of the easing of restrictions in Santa Clara County.

San Jose’s Oakridge Mall is open again with some restrictions and while there may be some pent up demand for indoor shopping, those happiest about the relaxing of the health order are hair salons and their clients.

It didn’t take long for word to get around that Willow Glen’s Mission Square Barber Shop and Salon was open again.

For most stylists, working outdoors just wasn’t cutting it.

“I think it’s very good news, we can go back to work and work inside feels better,” Snow said.

Not far away, Yvonne Sotello and her fellow stylists wasted no time welcoming back clients to the Hair Handlers salon, which has been closed for almost six months.

“What business can sustain being off six months, you know, almost a half a year. I don’t know any business that can do that. You go down the street you see many businesses closed,” Sotello said.

“It’s going to take a lot of time to coax our clients back to the salon and let them know that they are going to be ok,” Laura Ferante said.

The scaled back health orders means indoor retail is back, with some restrictions.

Westfield’s Oakridge and Valley Fair malls and many other indoor retail establishments have reopened at 25-percent of capacity.

The new system, which replaces the state’s watchlist, considers the counties’ positivity rate and cases per 100,000 residents.

All indoor businesses must still adhere to social distancing and cleaning protocols.

No problem say those who are in need of a haircut.

“Oh I think it’s great, I grew my hair for over six months so I’m here the very first day they are open,” Mike Fulton said.

Now under the new orders, counties reserve the right to be more restrictive. AS a result, nail salons must continue to work outdoors.

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San Francisco 49ers focus on what it’ll take to get back to the Super Bowl

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (KRON) – New season, new team, same goal.

The San Francisco 49ers know it’s going to take everything in them if they want to be back on the big stage this season.

The 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan spoke with reporters on Monday, “We do have a different team this year. Different players, different coaches. Even the people that are the same you’re always different the next year. You’re either worse or you’re better and we gotta work pretty dang hard to be better than we were.”

Shanahan adds, “Our guys are focused on how much better can we be? And we got to find that in order to get to that spot. We also know we gotta find that just to get to the playoffs.”

The head coach went on to say that the team is using last year’s Super Bowl run as motivation for the year to come.

With now having the experience under the players belt, the head coach states it makes guys that much more hungry to get back to that same position.

The San Francisco 49ers are scheduled to play their first game against the Arizona Cardinals at home on Sunday, September 13.

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No, the CDC has not reduced the death count related to COVID-19

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did not “backpedal” on the number of deaths caused by COVID-19, reducing the figure from nearly 154,000 to just over 9,000, as social media posts claimed.

The term “Only 6%” trended widely on Twitter over the weekend as supporters of the QAnon conspiracy theory promoted tweets that falsely suggested the CDC had updated its records to show that only 6% of U.S. deaths tied to COVID-19 were legitimate. President Donald Trump was among those who tweeted the information, which was later taken down by Twitter for violating platform rules.

The posts, which received hundreds of thousands of shares online, were based on a regularly updated CDC data table showing underlying conditions for those who died of COVID-19. The conditions included high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity, as well as problems that are caused by COVID-19 itself, such as respiratory failure and pneumonia.

The CDC data table is based on an analysis of death certificates that mention COVID-19 as a cause. For 6% of the deaths, COVID-19 was the only cause mentioned, the CDC notes.

The other 94% list COVID-19 and other conditions together. Among those deaths, there were, on average, 2.6 additional conditions or causes per death, the public health agency said.

As of Aug. 26, the CDC said, there were 161,332 deaths where COVID-19 was listed on the death certificate. Social media users over the weekend posted an older screenshot of the data that showed 153,504 deaths. The posts used the 6% figure to claim the U.S. death toll was much lower — 9,210.

“CDC just backpedaled (quietly) and adjusted the U.S. COVID deaths from 153,504 to 9,210. Admitting that their numbers are so (expletive) that they are off by a whopping 94%,” said a post being shared on Facebook Monday.

But such claims misrepresent the data. A death isn’t excluded from the COVID-19 tally just because the person was obese or had diabetes or dementia. Someone with heart problems can still be killed by COVID-19, and the death certificate could mention both as contributing.

Experts say it’s not surprising that so few people who died from COVID-19 had no underlying conditions listed on their death certificates. It is rare for people not to have multiple medical issues at death.

“The underlying cause of death is the condition that began the chain of events that ultimately led to the person’s death,” Dr. Robert Anderson, who oversees the CDC’s death statistics work, said in a statement. “In 92% of all deaths that mention COVID-19, COVID-19 is listed as the underlying cause of death.”

Also, while death certificates are supposed to list any causes or conditions that contributed, past research has shown that the documents aren’t perfect. Doctors might not know – or specify – all the reasons behind a particular death.

More important, the CDC figures show what medical professionals have been saying since the outset of the pandemic — that the virus tends to have a more severe impact on people with underlying conditions.

For example, people died with diabetes not because of it, said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious-diseases expert at Vanderbilt University.

“If it hadn’t been for the COVID virus infection, these people would be living today,” he said. “So yes, although they have contributing underlying chronic health factors, it’s still the COVID virus that killed them.”

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Delta, American join United in dropping most US change fees

DALLAS (AP) — This could be the final boarding call for the $200 ticket-change fee that has enraged so many U.S. airline travelers over the past decade.

Delta Air Lines and American Airlines said Monday that they are dropping the fee on most tickets for domestic flights, copying United Airlines’ move one day earlier.

Southwest Airlines didn’t levy change fees to start with, so Monday’s announcements mean that the four biggest U.S. carriers will have roughly similar policies.

Airlines are being battered by the coronavirus pandemic, as travel restrictions and fear of contracting the virus are keeping travelers at home. Normally in summer, 2 million or more people pass through security checkpoints at U.S. airports each day, but that number hasn’t been above 900,000 since mid-March, the early days of the pandemic.

To woo passengers, airlines have required face masks and stepped up cleaning of planes. A few, including Delta, Southwest and JetBlue, limit seating, although American and United try to sell every seat.

Delta and American said they have permanently eliminated change fees for all domestic flights for premium and most economy fares except the lowest fare, called basic economy. American said it will let all passengers fly standby for earlier same-day flights without charge beginning Oct. 1. United is making that change on Jan. 1.

Both carriers also extended temporary waivers on change fees for domestic and international flights, so ditching the fees permanently won’t make much difference to passengers right away. But by doing so, United, Delta and American are abandoning a fee that has drawn particular scorn from customers, consumer advocates and members of Congress.

Airline shares fell on Monday after United’s decision and the expectation that other big airlines would be forced to ditch their change fees too. Delta and United both ended down 3.6%, American shed 4% and Southwest retreated 3.2%.

Even without change fees, plenty of other fees will survive. Charges for checking a bag were greatly expanded more than a decade ago. Many airlines also charge extra for seat assignments, more legroom, priority boarding and other perks, and they provided a growing source of revenue for airlines until the pandemic hit.

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Full moon that happens only once every 3 years to brighten sky this week

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (WDAF) — A full moon with a special name given only once every three years will rise this week, according to the Farmer’s Almanac.

The Corn Moon is a full moon that rises in September. The September full moon is usually called the Harvest Moon because it is normally the closest full moon to the autumn equinox.

Every third year, however, a full moon comes in October that’s even closer, making the September full moon a Corn Moon.

“This full Moon name is attributed to Native Americans because it marked when corn was supposed to be harvested,” the almanac states. “At the peak of harvest, farmers can work late into the night by the light of this Moon.”

The full moon will be at its peak on Sept. 2.

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United Airlines getting rid of some change fees

United Airlines is eliminating some of its change fees permanently.

The new policy will apply to domestic ticketholders in economy and premium cabins.

Starting in January 2021, they’ll be able to fly same-day standby or change flights for free.

United is extending its waiver for tickets issued before then.

It allows travelers to change flights as many times as they want with no penalty.

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Dangerous ‘Benadryl Challenge’ on TikTok blamed for death of Oklahoma teen

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – The latest dangerous social media challenge has resulted in the tragic death of an Oklahoma City teenager.

Last week, a 15-year-old girl died from an overdose of Benadryl.

Described by those who cared about her as an otherwise happy and faith-driven teen, she was not one to experiment with drugs. However, she fell victim to what’s been called the Benadryl Challenge on TikTok.

The challenge is to trip out, or hallucinate, after taking a dozen or more doses of the pill.

“The dose that can cause a hallucination is very close to the dose that can cause something potentially life-threatening,” said Scott Schaeffer, director of the Oklahoma Center for Poison and Drug Information.

The challenge was blamed for the hospitalization of at least three teens in Fort Worth, Texas, back in May.

Shaeffer said the educators he works with spend a lot of time trying to help parents convince young people of the dangers of challenges like these.

“Large doses of Benadryl can cause seizures and, particularly, problems with the heart,” he said. “The heart tends to go out of rhythm and not pump blood effectively.”

That’s why parents are urged to monitor social media trends and talk to their kids.

“Parents need to know what their kids are doing on these social platforms. It may be a hard discussion, but you can get in and out,” said KFOR Digital Content Editor Kari King. “Just understand that they need to be skeptical of what they see online, and do not try anything that’s dangerous.”

The teen’s friends and loved ones are hoping to prevent this tragedy from happening to any other families.

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Second stimulus checks: Blame game continues as $1,200 direct payments stalled

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — On Sunday, White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows pointed the finger at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as the reason why Americans haven’t received a second stimulus check as part of a federally funded coronavirus aid package.

“She puts forth a number, suggests that she came down, and yet she’s willing to turn down $1.3 trillion of help that goes to the American people because she would rather them have nothing than to give way on what her fantasy might be,” said Meadows.

During a Sunday interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Meadows referred to the fact that Pelosi said Democrats would be willing to meet halfway — at $2.2 trillion — a slight reduction from her last proposal before talks collapsed in early August. The White House initially offered a $1 trillion deal.

“The $1.3 trillion package would also include funding for schools, childcare and hospitals “at levels (Pelosi) would agree with,” Meadows added.

The problem right now: both sides are about $1 trillion away from each other.

“We have said again and again that we’re willing to meet them in the middle — $2.2 trillion. When they’re willing to do that, we’ll be willing to discuss the particulars,” Pelosi told reporters last week at the Capitol.

When the two sides couldn’t agree to terms earlier this month on a wide-ranging package expected to include $1,200 stimulus checks, Trump took actions into his own hands — issuing four executive orders designed to give temporary reprieve, offering $300 in jobless benefits and some other aid.

Those executive orders did not include many things Democrats were pushing for, including money for cash-strapped states, housing and jobless assistance, to help schools reopen and to conduct more widespread virus testing.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell acknowledged last week that talks are in a “stalemate.” However, he remained hopeful for a deal.

“We need another one. The country needs another one,” he said during a visit to a hospital in Pikeville, Kentucky.

Congress is on recess until after Labor Day, and it appears unlikely lawmakers will be recalled to Washington unless there is a deal ready for voting. Talks are nowhere near resolution and in fact, broadening to include Postal Service funds before the November election. Also, a need for new disaster aid is expected with the Gulf state hurricanes and California wildfires.

The idea of a second round of $1,200 stimulus checks has bipartisan support, with Trump even saying the amount could go higher.

“I’d like to see it be very high because I love the people. I want the people to get it, you know, the economy is going to come back,” Trump said during a July visit to West Texas. “We saved millions of lives, but now we’re bringing (the economy) back … we gotta take care of the people in the meantime.”

Last weekend, House lawmakers appeared hopeful negotiators could agree to terms that included an additional check. Naturally, each side pointed at their political adversaries as the cause of the issue.

“My job is to keep fighting to make sure that the next package of COVID relief comes to happen,” said Rep. Lou Correa, a Democrat serving the area around Anaheim, California.

“It’s been frustrating for me to watch this unfold as it has,” said Democratic Rep. Joe Cunningham of South Carolina. “I would encourage everyone to remain at the negotiating table, (and) hammer out a deal recognizing that not everyone is going to get everything they want. Do not let perfect be the enemy of good.”

While some Republican lawmakers want to wait and see how money set aside in the previous aid package is utilized, others agree it’s time to reexamine the idea of additional relief.

“I believe it’s important to look at things we can do to stimulate the economy with things like stimulus checks, but also making sure that we are not continuing to add trillions of dollars of debt that (will) have to be paid by our children and grandchildren,” said Rep. Michael Guest of Mississippi.

The Republican, who won his seat in 2018 as a Trump supporter, noted he’d only be interested in supporting a scaled-down version of an aid package.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Indoor malls reopen in several Bay Area counties

CONCORD, Calif. (KRON) – Indoor malls like the Sunvalley Shopping Center in Concord can reopen Monday, but only at 25% capacity.

Every county can reopen malls except for San Francisco and Alameda counties.

Inside the malls’ reopening, food courts and common areas will remain closed.

This reopening is part of Governor Gavin Newsom’s revised health order, announced Friday.

The state’s new “Blueprint for a Safer Economy” plan ranks each California county using a colored tier system based on the rate of community spread there of coronavirus.

The tiers range from widespread to minimal.

Contra Costa County is one of 38 counties in the widespread purple tier.

Nail and hair salons can resume indoors again, too, with certain modifications.

However, gyms still have to stay outdoors.

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Decreased traffic from California’s stay-at-home order resulted in fewer wildlife deaths: study

A study shows California’s stay-at-home order in response to the coronavirus outbreak seems to have saved some wildlife, as decreased traffic resulted in fewer collisions with mountain lions, deer and other large animals.

The Road Ecology Center at UC Davis study found traffic declined by about 75% after the emergency order went into effect in March.

The number of animals struck and killed by vehicles also fell, including a 58% decrease in fatal crashes involving mountain lions between the 10 weeks before and 10 weeks after the order.

If the respite continues, California, Idaho and Maine could together see about 5,700 to 13,000 fewer large mammals killed each year and 50 fewer mountain lion deaths per year in California, according to the university.

“There is a statistically significant decline in wildlife deaths on highways in all three states following reductions in traffic this spring,” report author Fraser Shilling said in a news release. “This has not been the case for any of the previous five years for these three states. If anything, there is usually an increase in spring.”

Before stay-at-home orders, more than eight large wild animals were killed by vehicles each day in California. The number fell 21% to 6.6 animals killed each day after the orders.

Mountain lions in particular saw a large decrease in deaths.

“One significant impact of this finding is the clear link between traffic and rates of mountain lion death,” the study reads. “This means that to reduce mountain lion mortality, populations must be protected from traffic, especially in the Bay Area and Southern California where isolated and small populations of mountain lions are at risk of extinction.

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Decades-Old Soviet Studies Hint at Coronavirus Strategy

Decades-Old Soviet Studies Hint at Coronavirus Strategy

Decades-Old Soviet Studies Hint at Coronavirus Strategy https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCR0k7hsqw3CkcdTQ-d1_1-g MOSCOW — To the boys, it was just a sugary treat. To their parents, prominent medical researchers, what happened in their Moscow apartment that day in 1959 was a vital experiment with countless lives at stake — and their own children as guinea pigs.“We formed a kind of line,” Dr. Peter Chumakov, who was 7 at the time, recalled in an interview. Into each waiting mouth, a parent popped a sugar cube laced with weakened poliovirus — an early vaccine against a dreaded disease. “I was eating it from the hands of my mother.”Today, that same vaccine is gaining renewed... NCC2020723 Coronaviruses are a team of related infections that trigger diseases in creatures as well as birds. In people, coronaviruses create respiratory system system infections that can vary from moderate to dangerous. Light illnesses consist of some instances of the cold (which has other feasible causes, mostly rhinoviruses), while a lot more lethal ranges can trigger SARS, MERS, and also COVID-19. Signs in various other types vary: in hens, they create an upper respiratory system tract disease, while in cows as well as pigs they create diarrhea. There are yet to be vaccines or antiviral drugs to stop or treat human coronavirus infections. Coronaviruses make up the subfamily Orthocoronavirinae, in the family Coronaviridae, order Nidovirales, and also world Riboviria. They are enveloped viruses with a positive-sense single-stranded RNA genome and also a nucleocapsid of helical proportion. The genome size of coronaviruses ranges from about 26 to 32 kilobases, among the largest among RNA viruses. They have characteristic club-shaped spikes that predict from their surface area, which in electron micrographs produce a photo reminiscent of the solar corona from which their name derives. Decades-Old Soviet Studies Hint at Coronavirus Strategy https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCR0k7hsqw3CkcdTQ-d1_1-g https://ift.tt/2Ex33gV https://ift.tt/31nPSbb https://ift.tt/32hzAA1 https://ift.tt/3aOufnw https://ift.tt/3glBcOg #NationalCoronavirusCleanup #CoronavirusNews #Covid19Updates Decades-Old Soviet Studies Hint at Coronavirus Strategy Source: https://ift.tt/3fXqn4S
Decades-Old Soviet Studies Hint at Coronavirus Strategy

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