People flock to California beaches again, bringing hand sanitizer and hopeVideo
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. — A chilly breeze and cloudy skies didn’t deter hundreds of families, friends and couples from descending on Huntington Beach early Sunday. Couples lay on beach towels watching dozens of surfers ride the waves, as others played on the beach. A mother kept watch over young boys...
Trump disinfectant remarks led to hundreds of hotline callsVideo
ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Maryland’s health department fielded hundreds of calls from residents asking about ingesting disinfectants after President Donald Trump wondered aloud if that could fight covid-19, Gov Larry Hogan said Sunday. The Republican governor spoke about the emergency hotline calls and Trump’s offhand comment during appearances on CBS’ “Face...
Gov. Cuomo outlines ‘Phase 1’ of reopening, to start with upstate New York regions
NEW YORK — Parts of upstate New York could begin “Phase 1” of reopening about the middle of May — provided covid-19 hospitalizations have declined for two straight weeks by then — Gov. Cuomo said Sunday, though he noted the Big Apple will require extra caution. “I don’t want to...
No more bodies on the streets. But coronavirus batters Ecuador with disproportionate forceVideo
QUITO, Ecuador — The grisly scenes of bodies left on the streets of the Ecuadorian city of Guayaquil seemed dystopian even in the era of coronavirus. “This peaceful city received a bomb from the air, like Hiroshima,” Guayaquil Mayor Cynthia Viteri told a TV interviewer last week. The shocking images...
States stockpile drug touted by Trump despite doctors’ warnings
SALT LAKE CITY — State and local governments across the United States have obtained about 30 million doses of a malaria drug touted by President Trump to treat patients with the coronavirus, despite warnings from doctors more research is needed. At least 22 states and Washington, D.C., secured shipments of...
Louisiana pastor Tony Spell defies house arrest, again holds service during pandemic
CENTRAL, La. — A Louisiana pastor held services in his church Sunday, defying house arrest orders that followed an assault charge related to his decision to hold mass gatherings in defiance of public health orders during the coronavirus pandemic. A livestream from Life Tabernacle Church showed Tony Spell walking among...
Satellite imagery finds likely Kim Jong Un train amid health rumorsVideo
SEOUL, South Korea — A train likely belonging to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been parked at his compound on the country’s east coast since last week, satellite imagery showed, amid speculation about his health that has been caused, in part, by a long period out of the...
White House aiming for Trump pivot from virus to economy
WASHINGTON — After two months of frantic response to the coronavirus, the White House is planning to shift President Trump’s public focus to the burgeoning efforts aimed at easing the economic devastation caused by the pandemic. Days after he publicly mused that scientists should explore the injection of toxic disinfectants...
Census delay could put off new voting districts, primaries
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — The U.S. Census Bureau needs more time to wrap up the once-a-decade count because of the coronavirus, opening the possibility of delays in drawing new legislative districts that could help determine what political party is in power, what laws pass or fail and whether communities of...
Cuomo: Virus deaths drop below 400 for 1st time this monthVideo
NEW YORK — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the 367 deaths from the coronavirus he reported Sunday were “horrific,” but the number was less than half the nearly 800 deaths that occurred in a single day during the pandemic’s peak in New York. It is the first time this...
Lawmakers warn coronavirus contact-tracing ripe for abuse
WASHINGTON — It is a big promise from Silicon Valley to a nation looking for ways to be freed from home confinement: Smartphones could discreetly detect those who may have covid-19 and nudge them to quarantine, blunting renewed outbreaks as Americans start to venture out. But as tech firms lay...
1-eyed squirrel with Instagram account is returned to nature
LAFAYETTE, La. — A one-eyed squirrel that gained a social media following is being returned to nature. The Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries took Willamina the squirrel from Emily Istre of Lafayette on Thursday, the Acadiana Advocate reported. Istre created an Instagram account for the squirrel, one-eyed-willa, and posted...
Average U.S. gas price drops 9 cents over 2 weeks to $1.93
CAMARILLO, Calif. — The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline fell 9 cents over the past two weeks, to $1.93 per gallon. Industry analyst Trilby Lundberg of the Lundberg Survey said Sunday prices at the pump have dropped 61 cents over the past nine weeks and 80 cents since mid-October....
Police: Bandit skates off after Dunkin’ Donuts stickup
HICKSVILLE, N.Y. — A robber wearing in-line skates skated off into the night after sticking up a Dunkin’ Donuts on Long Island, police said. Nassau County police said the suspect glided into the Hicksville shop around 7:50 p.m. Friday, bought a cup of coffee and then demanded cash while making...
Farms scramble for answers as coronavirus threatens workers
HANOVER, Pa. — In farming, there are many unknowns. The economy, weather and customer demand can affect crops and ultimately a farmer’s bottom line. This year the agricultural industry was thrown a curve ball with covid-19. Now as harvest season approaches, farmers are facing new questions about the availability of...
UK’s Boris Johnson to return to Downing Street office on Monday
Britain’s Boris Johnson will return to work on Monday and take charge of the U.K.’s handling of the pandemic, a month after he was struck down by the coronavirus. The government has been without a leader since the prime minister was admitted to a London hospital on April 5. Since...
Fauci urges careful science on coronavirus drugs
Dr. Anthony Fauci is urging careful science to prove whether any of the drugs being explored as covid-19 treatments actually work. Fauci, infectious diseases chief at the National Institutes of Health, said Saturday during an online meeting of the National Academy of Sciences that the only way to get an...
New York opens antibody testing to healthcare, front line workers
NEW YORK — New York is starting to test healthcare workers for coronavirus antibodies and will do the same next week with transit and law enforcement workers as the state eases away from the worst days of the pandemic, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Saturday, Doctors, nurses and other employees at...
Naval destroyer USS Kidd reports rise in coronavirus cases to 33
WASHINGTON — The Navy reports that the number of sailors aboard the USS Kidd confirmed to be infected with the novel coronavirus has nearly doubled, rising from 18 on Friday to 33. The destroyer, with its crew of 350, is off the Pacific coast of South America. Its current mission...
Hospital ship offloads few remaining patients before NY exit
NEW YORK — The Navy hospital ship sent to relieve stress on New York City hospitals at the height the pandemic is discharging or transferring its last 12 patients this weekend as it nears the end of its mission, according to Northwell Health, which provides operational assistance to the vessel....
Attackers lob explosive at Lebanon bank amid currency crisis
BEIRUT — Unknown assailants lobbed an explosive device at a private bank branch in southern Lebanon on Saturday, damaging its facade and roof, the country’s state news agency reported. The assault on a branch of Fransabank in the southern city of Sidon came at a time of rising public anger...
FBI investigates fire that damaged Missouri Islamic center
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. — The FBI is offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of anyone connected to a fire that badly damaged an Islamic center in southeastern Missouri and that coincided with the start of a holy month for Muslims. Richard Quinn, the special agent in...
Cuomo on coronavirus sacrifices: ‘What you’re doing is actually saving lives’
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Saturday acknowledged frustration with coronavirus stay-home orders that have kept his state’s residents largely restricted to their homes for nearly two months, but he compared them to past generations’ sacrifices during prior national crises. “It’s been 56 long days,” Cuomo said at his daily...
Court: City of Baltimore must pay for claims police officers planted guns
BALTIMORE — Maryland’s highest court has ruled that the city of Baltimore must pay for two settlements resolving claims that police officers from a rogue unit planted guns during arrests. The Court of Appeals’ unanimous decision Friday rejected the city’s argument that officers from the Baltimore Police Department’s Gun Trace...
Global death toll from coronavirus surpasses 200,000
ATLANTA — As the global death toll from the coronavirus surpassed 200,000 on Saturday, countries took cautious steps toward easing some lockdowns, while fears of infection made even some pandemic-wounded businesses reluctant to reopen. The states of Georgia, Oklahoma and Alaska started loosening restrictions on businesses despite warnings from experts...
